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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  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. straw — dry grass
  2. rock — a stone
  3. clip — a video
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. key — the most important part
  6. content — the amount
  7. key — for a lock
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. rock — music
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. clip — for paper
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. clip — to cut
  21. key — in music
  22. stem — to come from
  23. content — happy
  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