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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.

Make a worksheet

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: wind · key · clip · racket · file · rock · scale · arm

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  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. key — for a lock
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. rock — a stone
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — for paper
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. rock — music
  10. file — a document
  11. key — the most important part
  12. file — a tool
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. file — a line of people
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. wind — moving air
  19. scale — in music
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. wind — moving air
  22. key — in music
  23. scale — size or range
  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