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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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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: mark · racket · land · rash · wave · fork · clip · arm

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. mark — a trace
  7. fork — in a road
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. clip — to cut
  10. land — to come down
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. clip — a video
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. mark — a grade
  15. rash — hasty
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. rash — a series
  18. land — a country
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. land — ground

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