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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rush · pit · mine · mate · degree · clip · cue · arm

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. clip — to cut
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. cue — a hint
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. mate — a friend
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. degree — temperature
  10. mate — to breed
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. pit — a hole
  13. rush — hurry
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. degree — from a university
  16. pit — in a race
  17. cue — a signal
  18. clip — for paper
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mate — a partner
  22. cue — for pool
  23. degree — an amount
  24. mine — belonging to me

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