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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: arm · temple · straw · clip · lash · ground · bat · safe

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. ground — a position
  3. ground — crushed
  4. clip — a video
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. clip — to cut
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. bat — the animal
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. clip — for paper
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. ground — the earth

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