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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. clip — a video
  5. pit — a hole
  6. pit — in a race
  7. last — final
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. clip — for paper
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. file — a tool
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. wind — moving air
  15. last — to go on
  16. clip — to cut
  17. wind — moving air
  18. file — a document
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. last — finally
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. nail — for a hammer

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