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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — for paper
  3. cell — in biology
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. mate — to breed
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. squash — to crush
  12. squash — the sport
  13. clip — a video
  14. kid — to tease
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. mate — a friend
  17. cell — a phone
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. mate — a partner
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. kid — child
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. sharp — clever

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