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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. bark — to shout
  3. pit — in a race
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. kick — in football
  10. mine — for digging
  11. stem — to come from
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. clip — a video
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. pound — a weight
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. pit — a hole
  24. clip — to cut

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