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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 120 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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. rest — a break
  4. suit — in cards
  5. rest — what's left
  6. bark — to shout
  7. suit — to fit
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. clip — a video
  10. clip — for paper
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. season — of the year
  15. clip — to cut
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. sharp — clever
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. season — in sport
  24. suit — clothes

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