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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 116 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: lash · sharp · stick · net · snap · firm · court · clip

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. sharp — clever
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. court — of law
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. clip — for paper
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. clip — to cut
  12. court — for sport
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. net — in sport
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. firm — decided
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. clip — a video
  20. snap — to click
  21. net — for catching
  22. court — of a king
  23. net — after costs
  24. firm — steady

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