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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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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: foot · mug · clip · deal · last · racket · fine · wound

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  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. deal — an agreement
  2. clip — for paper
  3. wound — an injury
  4. last — final
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. fine — all right
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. last — finally
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. wound — an injury
  12. foot — a measure
  13. mug — a face
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. fine — high quality
  17. last — to go on
  18. mug — to rob
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. clip — to cut
  21. deal — to handle
  22. mug — a cup
  23. racket — for tennis
  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