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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. object — an aim
  4. clip — a video
  5. spell — magic
  6. hand — help
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. spell — letters
  10. wound — an injury
  11. clip — for paper
  12. wound — an injury
  13. cue — for pool
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. clip — to cut
  16. cue — a hint
  17. spell — a short time
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. hand — in cards
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. object — a thing
  23. cue — a signal
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com