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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: key · fine · cap · wind · foot · mug · clip · arm

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. mug — to rob
  3. key — the most important part
  4. clip — to cut
  5. fine — all right
  6. fine — high quality
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. mug — a cup
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. mug — a face
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. cap — a lid
  14. key — for a lock
  15. key — in music
  16. cap — a hat
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. cap — of ice
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. clip — for paper
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — moving air
  24. clip — a video

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