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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. clip — a video
  3. rest — a break
  4. snap — to click
  5. wake — a trail
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. degree — temperature
  8. key — in music
  9. suit — clothes
  10. clip — to cut
  11. suit — to fit
  12. key — for a lock
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. clip — for paper
  15. degree — from a university
  16. rest — what's left
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. suit — in cards
  19. stand — to bear
  20. degree — an amount
  21. key — the most important part
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. rest — what's left
  24. stand — for spectators

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