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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  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. chair — to sit on
  2. saw — the tool
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. clip — to cut
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. squash — the sport
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. file — a tool
  10. file — a line of people
  11. game — a match
  12. mug — to rob
  13. file — a document
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. chair — a leader
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. game — wild animals
  19. saw — the tool
  20. squash — to crush
  21. mug — a face
  22. mug — a cup
  23. clip — a video
  24. clip — for paper

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