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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. hand — help
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. lean — to bend
  6. rock — a stone
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. can — a tin
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. hand — in cards
  11. march — music
  12. march — the month
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. lean — thin
  16. can — to be able to
  17. clip — a video
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. rock — music
  20. march — the month
  21. clip — to cut
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. can — a tin

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