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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: rush · wind · net · snap · can · lean · ball · clip

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. lean — thin
  3. wind — moving air
  4. ball — a dance
  5. net — after costs
  6. net — for catching
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. rush — hurry
  9. net — in sport
  10. wind — moving air
  11. can — to be able to
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. clip — for paper
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. ball — a great time
  16. clip — to cut
  17. lean — to bend
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. can — a tin
  20. can — a tin
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. clip — a video
  24. rush — to hurry

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