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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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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: bank · wound · lie · kid · clip · bay · row · content

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. bank — for money
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. clip — to cut
  7. row — a line
  8. clip — a video
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. content — the amount
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. content — happy
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. bank — of a river
  17. bank — for money
  18. clip — for paper
  19. wound — an injury
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. kid — child
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. kid — to tease
  24. lie — to recline

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