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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: pitch · clip · chest · key · fine · wave · perch · mug

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. clip — for paper
  3. mug — a face
  4. chest — a box
  5. chest — of your body
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. mug — a cup
  8. key — the most important part
  9. key — for a lock
  10. fine — high quality
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. chest — of your body
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. pitch — completely
  17. mug — to rob
  18. key — in music
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. perch — the fish
  23. clip — a video
  24. clip — to cut

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