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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. clip — a video
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. object — a thing
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. wind — moving air
  7. dip — to sink
  8. wind — moving air
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. clip — to cut
  11. fine — all right
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. object — to protest
  14. clip — for paper
  15. object — an aim
  16. court — for sport
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. court — of a king
  20. fine — high quality
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. court — of law
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. wind — to turn a key

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