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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. bear — the animal
  4. kick — in football
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. swing — in golf
  7. sharp — clever
  8. swing — music
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. clip — a video
  15. perch — the fish
  16. bear — the animal
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. clip — to cut
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. swing — to play on

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