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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.

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: kick · chair · clip · rock · rash · file · wake · last

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. wake — a trail
  3. clip — to cut
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. rash — a series
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. last — finally
  8. clip — a video
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. kick — in football
  12. file — a line of people
  13. rock — music
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. last — final
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. file — a tool
  18. last — to go on
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. rash — hasty
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. clip — for paper
  23. file — a document
  24. rock — a stone

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