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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. net — for catching
  3. club — for dancing
  4. net — after costs
  5. last — final
  6. snap — to click
  7. clip — to cut
  8. club — for golf
  9. clip — for paper
  10. lean — to bend
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. lean — thin
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. last — finally
  16. net — in sport
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. last — to go on
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. clip — a video

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