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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: craft · tube · sharp · clip · chest · snap · fall · fine

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. clip — a video
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. clip — for paper
  7. chest — of your body
  8. fall — the season
  9. craft — boats
  10. tube — a container
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fine — all right
  13. chest — a box
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. tube — the underground
  16. craft — a skill
  17. clip — to cut
  18. fall — to drop
  19. chest — of your body
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. snap — to click
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. fine — high quality
  24. tube — in a tire

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