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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. clip — for paper
  5. chest — a box
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. rash — a series
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. spell — a short time
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. clip — a video
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. chest — of your body
  18. mark — a grade
  19. mark — a trace
  20. spell — letters
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. chest — of your body
  23. rash — hasty
  24. spell — magic

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