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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. swing — music
  3. cue — for pool
  4. wind — moving air
  5. sharp — clever
  6. swing — in golf
  7. field — for sport
  8. swing — to play on
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. field — a subject
  12. stem — to come from
  13. clip — to cut
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. wind — moving air
  16. cue — a hint
  17. stand — to bear
  18. cue — a signal
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. clip — a video
  23. field — farmland
  24. clip — for paper

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