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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — a video
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. object — an aim
  7. object — to protest
  8. object — a thing
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. row — a line
  11. pop — soda
  12. clip — for paper
  13. row — to paddle
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. rush — hurry
  17. sharp — clever
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pop — music
  24. sharp — exactly

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