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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: clip · cabinet · cell · pass · row · saw · kick · spring

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. spring — a coil
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. clip — to cut
  7. spring — of water
  8. spring — the season
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. cell — in biology
  12. kick — in football
  13. pass — a permit
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. clip — a video
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. clip — for paper
  20. saw — the tool
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. cell — a phone
  23. row — a line
  24. saw — the tool

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