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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. stem — to come from
  3. tube — a container
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. clip — for paper
  10. fall — to drop
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. swing — to play on
  15. tube — the underground
  16. fall — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — a video
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. mark — a grade
  23. swing — music
  24. mark — a trace

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