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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. cap — a hat
  3. club — for golf
  4. clip — a video
  5. lie — to recline
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. club — for dancing
  9. fork — in a road
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. bound — certain
  13. bound — obliged
  14. cap — of ice
  15. clip — for paper
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. club — a group
  18. kid — child
  19. clip — to cut
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. cap — a lid
  22. kid — to tease
  23. bound — tied together
  24. lash — to lash out

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