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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: straw · club · safe · last · clip · lash · mate · cap

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. last — to go on
  3. clip — for paper
  4. cap — of ice
  5. last — final
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. cap — a hat
  8. mate — a friend
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. mate — to breed
  12. club — for golf
  13. club — a group
  14. cap — a lid
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. club — for dancing
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. clip — to cut
  20. clip — a video
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. mate — a partner
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. last — finally

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