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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. clip — a video
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. net — for catching
  8. current — of water
  9. current — electric
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. object — an aim
  12. kick — in football
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. clip — for paper
  16. object — to protest
  17. clip — to cut
  18. mine — for digging
  19. current — happening now
  20. object — a thing
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — after costs
  24. arm — part of the body

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