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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: bear · snap · clip · arm · land · patient · cabinet · nail

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. bear — the animal
  5. land — ground
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. clip — for paper
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — to cut
  21. land — to come down
  22. snap — to click
  23. land — a country
  24. nail — on a finger

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