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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: dip · lie · kid · snap · clip · row · file · pass

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. clip — for paper
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. row — to paddle
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. file — a tool
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. dip — to sink
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. snap — to click
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. lie — to recline
  15. file — a line of people
  16. clip — a video
  17. clip — to cut
  18. pass — a permit
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. kid — to tease
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. file — a document
  24. row — a line

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