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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 · clip · pop · safe · wind · bore · capital · deal

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. bore — to tire
  3. pop — music
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. clip — for paper
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. wind — moving air
  10. clip — a video
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. deal — to handle
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. capital — a city
  16. pop — soda
  17. bore — to drill
  18. capital — money
  19. wind — moving air
  20. pop — to visit
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. clip — to cut
  24. safe — out of danger

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