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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — for paper
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. present — the time now
  6. kick — in football
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. stem — to come from
  9. firm — a company
  10. pit — a hole
  11. mug — a face
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. mug — to rob
  14. firm — steady
  15. firm — decided
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. mug — a cup
  19. present — a gift
  20. present — there
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. pit — in a race
  23. clip — a video
  24. bat — 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