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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. board — a committee
  3. key — for a lock
  4. clip — for paper
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. present — there
  9. key — the most important part
  10. file — a line of people
  11. file — a document
  12. clip — a video
  13. root — of a word
  14. key — in music
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. present — the time now
  18. board — to get on
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. root — the cause
  21. present — a gift
  22. wake — a trail
  23. root — of a plant
  24. clip — to cut

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