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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. field — for sport
  5. clip — to cut
  6. swing — music
  7. pit — a hole
  8. clip — for paper
  9. clip — a video
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. spell — magic
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. spell — a short time
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. spell — letters
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. swing — in golf
  21. swing — to play on
  22. field — a subject
  23. pit — in a race
  24. field — farmland

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