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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.

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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: pound · kid · sharp · clip · bay · rest · saw · deal

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. deal — to handle
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. rest — what's left
  10. sharp — clever
  11. clip — a video
  12. rest — what's left
  13. clip — to cut
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. saw — the tool
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. saw — the tool
  20. clip — for paper
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. kid — child
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. rest — a break

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