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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. rest — what's left
  4. mate — a partner
  5. swing — in golf
  6. swing — to play on
  7. clip — a video
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. swing — music
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. mate — a friend
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. rest — what's left
  16. mate — to breed
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. clip — to cut
  20. stem — to come from
  21. rest — a break
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — the fish
  24. fan — to cool the air

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