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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. lie — to recline
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. fall — the season
  5. stem — to come from
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. kid — to tease
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — to drop
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. swing — to play on
  17. swing — in golf
  18. root — of a word
  19. kid — child
  20. root — of a plant
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. fork — in a road
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. root — the cause

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