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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.

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: bark · bass · pop · nail · wind · clip · lean · straw

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. lean — to bend
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. wind — moving air
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. bass — the fish
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. wind — moving air
  11. lean — thin
  12. bass — low music
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. clip — to cut
  15. pop — soda
  16. clip — a video
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. pop — music
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. pop — to visit
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. bark — to shout
  24. nail — for a hammer

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