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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 116 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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Word bank
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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: leaves · patient · kick · clip · bore · club · straw · net

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. club — for golf
  3. net — after costs
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. kick — in football
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. club — for dancing
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — for paper
  14. club — a group
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. clip — to cut
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. bore — to drill
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. bore — to tire
  23. net — for catching
  24. straw — a straw man

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