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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — a short time
  4. court — of law
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — for sport
  7. current — of water
  8. clip — a video
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. current — electric
  11. current — happening now
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. spell — magic
  14. last — finally
  15. kick — in football
  16. object — to protest
  17. last — to go on
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. last — final
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. object — an aim
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. clip — to cut
  24. object — a thing

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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