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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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Word bank
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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 · stem · hide · wound · kick · clip · prune · cabinet

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. swing — music
  3. clip — for paper
  4. stem — to come from
  5. prune — to trim
  6. clip — to cut
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. swing — in golf
  12. prune — to trim
  13. wound — an injury
  14. kick — in football
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. wound — an injury
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. clip — a video
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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