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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. clip — a video
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. mine — for digging
  7. kid — child
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. clip — to cut
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. kid — to tease
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. snap — to click
  16. clip — for paper
  17. staff — employees
  18. wound — an injury
  19. staff — a stick
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. staff — employees

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