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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. saw — the tool
  4. clip — to cut
  5. key — the most important part
  6. suit — in cards
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. suit — to fit
  9. chair — a leader
  10. row — to paddle
  11. clip — a video
  12. key — for a lock
  13. ball — a dance
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. ball — a great time
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. clip — for paper
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. saw — the tool
  21. suit — clothes
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. key — in music
  24. row — a line

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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