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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 116 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: plane · mouse · clip · snap · rush · row · club · kick

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. club — for golf
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — for paper
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. club — a group
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. plane — a tool
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. row — a line
  15. rush — hurry
  16. kick — in football
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. club — for dancing
  21. row — to paddle
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. snap — to click
  24. clip — a video

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