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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 seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. net — for catching
  4. clip — a video
  5. land — a country
  6. net — in sport
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. cue — a signal
  9. cue — for pool
  10. snap — to click
  11. mine — for digging
  12. net — after costs
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. land — to come down
  19. clip — for paper
  20. cue — a hint
  21. land — ground
  22. rash — hasty
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. rash — a series

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