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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 120 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: clip · arm · chest · wind · bay · deal · net · prune

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. chest — a box
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. net — in sport
  8. chest — of your body
  9. wind — moving air
  10. chest — of your body
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. clip — for paper
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. prune — to trim
  18. deal — to handle
  19. clip — a video
  20. net — for catching
  21. net — after costs
  22. wind — moving air
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. clip — to cut

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