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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 116 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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. file — a line of people
  4. swing — music
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. net — for catching
  7. net — after costs
  8. swing — to play on
  9. clip — for paper
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. net — in sport
  12. clip — a video
  13. file — a document
  14. clip — to cut
  15. stem — to come from
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lean — thin
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. swing — in golf
  20. bulb — for light
  21. chair — a leader
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. bulb — for light
  24. stem — of a plant

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