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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. clip — for paper
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. clip — a video
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. rush — hurry
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. season — in sport
  19. season — of the year
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. sharp — clever
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — in music
  24. sharp — exactly

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