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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: hide · cell · stick · arm · lash · squash · snap · clip

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. snap — to click
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. cell — in biology
  7. squash — the sport
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. clip — to cut
  14. clip — a video
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. clip — for paper
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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