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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: prune · clip · present · kick · arm · dip · wound · cabinet

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. present — there
  3. clip — to cut
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. prune — to trim
  6. clip — for paper
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. present — the time now
  10. dip — to sink
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. prune — to trim
  16. wound — an injury
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. kick — in football
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. present — a gift
  21. clip — a video
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. wound — an injury
  24. dip — a sauce

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