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

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. clip — a video
  4. drill — army training
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. clip — to cut
  10. lean — thin
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — in golf
  13. clip — for paper
  14. chip — to eat
  15. drill — the tool
  16. court — of a king
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. toast — bread
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. drill — a practice
  21. chip — for betting
  22. swing — music
  23. court — of law
  24. court — for sport

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