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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 116 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: deal · pit · cell · straw · bear · lie · clip · wind

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. deal — to handle
  3. clip — for paper
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. clip — to cut
  7. lie — to recline
  8. pit — in a race
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. clip — a video
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — the animal
  14. cell — a phone
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. cell — in biology
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wind — moving air

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