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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: straw · clip · lean · chip · squash · arm · rock · row

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. lean — thin
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. rock — a stone
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. clip — to cut
  7. row — a line
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. clip — a video
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. squash — the sport
  12. chip — to eat
  13. row — to paddle
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. chip — for betting
  16. squash — to crush
  17. lean — to bend
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. rock — music
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. clip — for paper
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. rock — to move gently

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