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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. swing — in golf
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. lean — to bend
  5. swing — to play on
  6. bound — tied together
  7. clip — to cut
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. ground — crushed
  10. bound — certain
  11. file — a tool
  12. ground — the earth
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. file — a line of people
  15. lean — thin
  16. swing — music
  17. pass — a permit
  18. ground — a position
  19. bound — obliged
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. clip — a video
  24. file — a document

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