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

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. clip — to cut
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. clip — a video
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. plane — a tool
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. lean — to bend
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. lean — thin
  20. wake — a trail
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. arm — part of the body

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