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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. firm — a company
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. court — of law
  6. sharp — clever
  7. clip — for paper
  8. firm — steady
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. saw — the tool
  11. clip — a video
  12. swing — music
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. firm — decided
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. saw — the tool
  18. swing — to play on
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — for sport
  22. swing — in golf
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. clip — to cut

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