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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: clip · rush · stick · face · chair · pitcher · last · snap

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  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. pitcher — in baseball
  2. clip — a video
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. last — final
  7. rush — hurry
  8. chair — a leader
  9. last — finally
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. face — to confront
  12. clip — for paper
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. face — part of the head
  15. last — to go on
  16. face — to point toward
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. snap — to click
  20. clip — to cut
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. chair — a professorship
  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