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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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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: kick · clip · pit · prune · tear · pass · sharp · mouse

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. prune — to trim
  8. pit — a hole
  9. clip — to cut
  10. kick — in football
  11. pass — a permit
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. clip — for paper
  14. tear — from crying
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. clip — a video
  17. sharp — clever
  18. prune — to trim
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. tear — to rip
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. tear — from crying
  24. pit — in a race

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