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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. drill — the tool
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. drill — army training
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. clip — a video
  8. clip — for paper
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. content — happy
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. content — the amount
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — in football
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. drill — a practice
  21. hand — in cards
  22. lie — to recline
  23. dip — to sink
  24. wave — of the sea

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