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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. pit — a hole
  8. stem — to come from
  9. clip — for paper
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. clip — a video
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. pit — in a race
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. plane — a tool
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. toast — bread
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. clip — to cut

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