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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. clip — for paper
  5. key — the most important part
  6. rock — music
  7. key — for a lock
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. key — in music
  10. snap — to click
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. rest — what's left
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. content — happy
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rock — a stone
  19. rest — a break
  20. clip — to cut
  21. clip — a video
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. content — the amount

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