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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. can — a tin
  3. clip — for paper
  4. rash — a series
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. clip — a video
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. squash — the sport
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. rash — hasty
  13. swing — in golf
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. clip — to cut
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. snap — to click
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. can — a tin
  20. swing — music
  21. squash — to crush
  22. sharp — clever
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. swing — to play on

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