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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. clip — to cut
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. object — a thing
  8. clip — a video
  9. lie — to recline
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. hand — in cards
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. object — an aim
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. clip — for paper
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. dip — to sink
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. hand — help
  23. dip — a sauce
  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