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

Word bank: kick · last · perch · clip · patient · snap · jam · key

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. snap — to click
  4. key — for a lock
  5. clip — for paper
  6. last — final
  7. key — in music
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. clip — a video
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. key — the most important part
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. last — finally
  20. kick — in football
  21. clip — to cut
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. perch — the fish
  24. last — to go 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