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

Word bank: clip · wind · lie · deal · mark · last · staff · object

  1. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. mark — a grade
  3. clip — a video
  4. deal — to handle
  5. wind — moving air
  6. last — to go on
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. lie — to recline
  10. last — final
  11. object — to protest
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. staff — employees
  14. last — finally
  15. staff — employees
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. wind — moving air
  18. clip — for paper
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. mark — a trace
  21. clip — to cut
  22. staff — a stick
  23. object — an aim
  24. deal — a big deal

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