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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: season · lash · straw · mouse · dip · pound · clip · pitcher

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. clip — to cut
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. pound — a weight
  7. season — in sport
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. dip — to sink
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. season — of the year
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. clip — a video
  24. dip — a sauce

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