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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 120 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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Word bank
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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: clip · bulb · arm · kick · cap · bound · pitch · bark

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. cap — a lid
  3. bound — obliged
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. pitch — completely
  6. cap — a hat
  7. bulb — for light
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bound — certain
  10. clip — a video
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. clip — to cut
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bark — to shout
  21. cap — of ice
  22. bound — tied together
  23. kick — in football
  24. bulb — for light

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