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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 seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. chest — of your body
  4. clip — a video
  5. swing — music
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. bear — the animal
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. tube — the underground
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bear — the animal
  14. current — electric
  15. swing — in golf
  16. chest — a box
  17. swing — to play on
  18. chest — of your body
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. current — of water
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. clip — for paper
  23. current — happening now
  24. tube — a container

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