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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. cell — a phone
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. clip — a video
  5. cell — in biology
  6. key — the most important part
  7. can — to be able to
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. pass — a permit
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. clip — to cut
  14. key — for a lock
  15. wind — moving air
  16. can — a tin
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. key — in music
  20. kick — in football
  21. wind — moving air
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. clip — for paper
  24. rush — hurry

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