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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 got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. spell — magic
  3. wound — an injury
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. club — for dancing
  7. spell — letters
  8. club — for golf
  9. foot — a measure
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. wound — an injury
  12. face — part of the head
  13. deal — to handle
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. fine — all right
  16. face — to confront
  17. face — to point toward
  18. fine — high quality
  19. spell — a short time
  20. clip — to cut
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. clip — a video
  23. club — a group
  24. clip — for paper

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