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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. swing — to play on
  3. stem — to come from
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. key — for a lock
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. key — in music
  10. cue — for pool
  11. clip — to cut
  12. cue — a signal
  13. swing — music
  14. clip — for paper
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. kick — in football
  17. sharp — clever
  18. swing — in golf
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. cue — a hint
  22. key — the most important part
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. kick — with a leg

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