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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: hand · last · snap · key · can · spell · clip · fork

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. hand — help
  3. clip — to cut
  4. snap — to click
  5. key — the most important part
  6. last — final
  7. hand — in cards
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. clip — for paper
  10. spell — a short time
  11. last — finally
  12. can — to be able to
  13. clip — a video
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fork — in a road
  16. can — a tin
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. last — to go on
  19. can — a tin
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. key — for a lock
  22. spell — letters
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. spell — magic

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