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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. charge — in control
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. wind — moving air
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. clip — a video
  9. charge — a price
  10. last — final
  11. fine — high quality
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. charge — electricity
  15. clip — for paper
  16. kid — child
  17. last — to go on
  18. wind — moving air
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. fine — all right
  21. kid — to tease
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. last — finally

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