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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rush — hurry
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. net — after costs
  8. clip — a video
  9. key — the most important part
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. clip — to cut
  12. key — in music
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. object — a thing
  15. object — to protest
  16. bound — tied together
  17. object — an aim
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bound — obliged
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. net — for catching
  22. key — for a lock
  23. foot — a measure
  24. bound — certain

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