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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. wind — moving air
  3. clip — to cut
  4. mug — a cup
  5. object — an aim
  6. mug — to rob
  7. cell — a phone
  8. spring — a coil
  9. cell — in biology
  10. object — a thing
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. mug — a face
  13. bank — of a river
  14. object — to protest
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. clip — a video
  17. bank — for money
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bank — for money
  21. spring — of water
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. spring — the season

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