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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: bass · kick · ground · wound · bay · clip · rest · tube

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. bass — low music
  5. rest — a break
  6. tube — a container
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. clip — for paper
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. ground — the earth
  13. clip — a video
  14. bass — the fish
  15. wound — an injury
  16. rest — what's left
  17. tube — the underground
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. clip — to cut
  22. ground — a position
  23. ground — crushed
  24. rest — what's left

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