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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. clip — for paper
  3. cell — in biology
  4. swing — music
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. cell — a phone
  9. fine — high quality
  10. swing — to play on
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. march — music
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. swing — in golf
  18. fine — all right
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — to cut
  23. wake — a trail
  24. march — the month

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