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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 120 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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. rest — a break
  3. season — of the year
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. pound — a weight
  6. clip — to cut
  7. key — for a lock
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. rest — what's left
  10. season — in sport
  11. clip — a video
  12. clip — for paper
  13. key — the most important part
  14. saw — the tool
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. saw — the tool
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. pitch — completely
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. rest — what's left
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. key — in music

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