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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: lean · bay · clip · fall · pitcher · deal · chest · sharp

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. chest — of your body
  3. lean — thin
  4. chest — a box
  5. clip — for paper
  6. fall — the season
  7. deal — to handle
  8. sharp — clever
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. chest — of your body
  14. fall — to drop
  15. clip — a video
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. fall — to drop
  21. lean — to bend
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. sharp — exactly

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