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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. rock — a stone
  3. tube — the underground
  4. clip — a video
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. clip — for paper
  7. tube — a container
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — farmland
  11. net — in sport
  12. last — final
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. last — to go on
  17. rock — music
  18. clip — to cut
  19. present — there
  20. net — after costs
  21. present — a gift
  22. present — the time now
  23. net — for catching
  24. field — for sport

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