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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 · snap · bulb · toast · kick · bat · fork · clip

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. bulb — for light
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. clip — a video
  5. kick — in football
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. toast — bread
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. bulb — for light
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. clip — for paper
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. snap — to click
  16. fork — in a road
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. clip — to cut
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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