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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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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: safe · perch · clip · kid · fork · hand · club · hide

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. club — a group
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. fork — in a road
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. kid — to tease
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. clip — a video
  11. club — for dancing
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. hand — help
  15. clip — for paper
  16. clip — to cut
  17. kid — child
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. perch — the fish
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. club — for golf
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. perch — for a bird

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