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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. clip — to cut
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. ground — crushed
  5. snap — to click
  6. ground — the earth
  7. kick — in football
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. cue — a signal
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. race — the arms race
  12. dip — to sink
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. cue — for pool
  15. race — humankind
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. clip — a video
  19. cue — a hint
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. ground — a position
  24. race — a contest

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