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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: clip · racket · bay · dip · patient · rash · straw · lean

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. clip — a video
  4. lean — thin
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. rash — a series
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. clip — to cut
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lean — to bend
  12. dip — to sink
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. clip — for paper
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. rash — hasty
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. bay — a horse colour

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