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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 coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. hand — in cards
  3. drill — army training
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. stem — to come from
  6. clip — to cut
  7. hand — help
  8. clip — a video
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. vault — a safe
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. saw — the tool
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. swing — to play on
  15. drill — the tool
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. swing — music
  18. drill — a practice
  19. clip — for paper
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. saw — the tool
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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