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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: swing · mark · patient · toast · date · cold · hide · clip

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. clip — a video
  3. swing — music
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. swing — in golf
  6. mark — a grade
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. toast — bread
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. clip — to cut
  13. swing — to play on
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. clip — for paper
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. cold — not warm
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. mark — a trace

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