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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 116 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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. swing — to play on
  4. swing — in golf
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. branch — a division
  7. clip — a video
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. clip — to cut
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. file — a line of people
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. kick — in football
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. file — a tool
  17. file — a document
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. swing — music
  22. clip — for paper
  23. pitch — completely
  24. fan — to cool the air

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