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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. kid — child
  3. file — a document
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. stem — to come from
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. clip — a video
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. clip — for paper
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. file — a tool
  19. file — a line of people
  20. stand — to bear
  21. kid — to tease
  22. clip — to cut
  23. lie — to recline
  24. lie — an untruth

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