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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. swing — in golf
  3. scale — size or range
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. stem — to come from
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. swing — to play on
  8. plane — a tool
  9. last — finally
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. hand — in cards
  12. hand — help
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. last — final
  15. last — to go on
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. swing — music
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — to cut
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. clip — a video
  23. scale — in music
  24. scale — for weighing

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