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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — a video
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. tube — a container
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. stand — to bear
  11. lie — to recline
  12. kick — in football
  13. present — a gift
  14. wake — a trail
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. present — the time now
  17. season — in sport
  18. clip — for paper
  19. season — of the year
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. present — there
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. tube — in a tire

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