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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: mouse · kick · club · stick · clip · wave · press · bark

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. club — for golf
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. press — a publisher
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. press — to push
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. clip — for paper
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. club — for dancing
  14. kick — in football
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. club — a group
  21. bark — to shout
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. press — newspapers
  24. clip — to cut

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