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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
468
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: dip · can · clip · spell · spring · hide · cold · snap

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. clip — for paper
  3. spell — a short time
  4. snap — to click
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. clip — a video
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. spring — of water
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. can — a tin
  11. cold — not warm
  12. can — to be able to
  13. can — a tin
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. dip — to sink
  16. clip — to cut
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. cold — an illness
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. spring — a coil
  21. spell — magic
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. spring — the season
  24. hide — to keep secret

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