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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: clip · lash · land · arm · key · wound · rush · ground

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. rush — hurry
  3. land — a country
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — to cut
  6. key — the most important part
  7. land — to come down
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. ground — a position
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. key — in music
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — an injury
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. land — ground
  17. key — for a lock
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. ground — the earth
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. clip — for paper

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