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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: club · bear · clip · degree · cue · sharp · jam · wave

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. club — for dancing
  3. cue — a signal
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. bear — the animal
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. cue — for pool
  8. degree — temperature
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. sharp — clever
  11. degree — from a university
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. club — a group
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. clip — a video
  20. club — for golf
  21. clip — for paper
  22. degree — an amount
  23. cue — a hint
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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