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

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. clip — to cut
  3. file — a document
  4. dip — to sink
  5. file — a line of people
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. drill — a practice
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. clip — a video
  10. file — a tool
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. drill — army training
  13. kick — in football
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. rock — music
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. drill — the tool
  18. rock — a stone

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