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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. foot — a measure
  3. track — a path
  4. clip — a video
  5. face — to confront
  6. track — to keep track
  7. clip — to cut
  8. firm — decided
  9. firm — steady
  10. rest — what's left
  11. track — a song
  12. press — newspapers
  13. clip — for paper
  14. face — part of the head
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. press — to push
  17. face — to point toward
  18. rest — a break
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. firm — a company
  21. press — a publisher
  22. rest — what's left
  23. capital — a city
  24. foot — the bottom

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