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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. clip — a video
  4. prune — to trim
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. suit — to fit
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. roll — a list
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. suit — in cards
  12. clip — to cut
  13. suit — clothes
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. clip — for paper
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. chair — a leader
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. bear — the animal
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. bear — the animal

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