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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: bear · face · fine · kid · wound · clip · arm · racket

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. clip — a video
  6. wound — an injury
  7. face — to confront
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. clip — to cut
  10. face — to point toward
  11. bear — the animal
  12. fine — all right
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. wound — an injury
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. bear — the animal
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. face — part of the head
  22. fine — high quality
  23. clip — for paper
  24. kid — child

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