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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: stick · key · kick · hide · clip · field

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. kick — in football
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — a video
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. key — in music
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. clip — for paper
  11. field — a subject
  12. key — the most important part
  13. field — for sport
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. key — for a lock
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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