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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: present · clip · kid · suit · lash · wake · straw · arm

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. present — there
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. kid — child
  5. present — the time now
  6. suit — to fit
  7. present — a gift
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. kid — to tease
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. suit — clothes
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. wake — a trail
  17. suit — in cards
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — a video
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. wake — before a funeral

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