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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: hand · mark · season · foot · clip · face · kid · mouse

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. face — to point toward
  3. clip — to cut
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. face — part of the head
  7. clip — a video
  8. hand — help
  9. mark — a grade
  10. mark — a trace
  11. kid — child
  12. season — of the year
  13. hand — in cards
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. clip — for paper
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. foot — a measure
  20. season — in sport
  21. face — to confront
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. season — to add flavour

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