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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: deal · spring · board · swing · mouse · prune · face · clip

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. clip — a video
  3. spring — the season
  4. face — to point toward
  5. prune — to trim
  6. swing — in golf
  7. face — to confront
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. board — a committee
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. swing — music
  12. swing — to play on
  13. clip — for paper
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. deal — to handle
  16. clip — to cut
  17. board — to get on
  18. face — part of the head
  19. spring — a coil
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. prune — to trim
  23. spring — of water
  24. prune — the fruit

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