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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 120 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: deal · chest · clip · rash · fork · last · kick · fine

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. fork — in a road
  3. deal — to handle
  4. chest — a box
  5. fine — all right
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. last — to go on
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rash — hasty
  11. chest — of your body
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. clip — to cut
  14. rash — a series
  15. clip — a video
  16. kick — in football
  17. chest — of your body
  18. last — finally
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. fine — high quality
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. last — final

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