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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. club — a group
  4. clip — a video
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. club — for golf
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. club — for dancing
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. fork — in a road
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. clip — to cut
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. lean — to bend
  19. clip — for paper
  20. deal — to handle
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. lean — thin

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