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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. cell — in biology
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. clip — for paper
  6. clip — a video
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. cold — not warm
  10. pound — a weight
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. mug — to rob
  15. mug — a cup
  16. cell — a phone
  17. bass — the fish
  18. cold — an illness
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. mug — a face
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. bass — low music

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