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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. swing — music
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. clip — a video
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. mark — a grade
  7. chip — to eat
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. snap — to click
  10. clip — to cut
  11. chip — for betting
  12. clip — for paper
  13. swing — to play on
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. mark — a trace
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. kid — to tease
  21. swing — in golf
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. lash — to lash out

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