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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. clip — a video
  6. ball — a dance
  7. tear — from crying
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. cue — for pool
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. clip — for paper
  12. tear — from crying
  13. ball — a great time
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. tear — to rip
  16. clip — to cut
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. cue — a hint
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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