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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: kick · swing · mate · stem · bat · pass · object · perch

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. perch — the fish
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. pass — a permit
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. mate — a friend
  8. bat — the animal
  9. swing — in golf
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. kick — in football
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. swing — music
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. object — a thing
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. mate — to breed
  18. object — to protest
  19. mate — a partner
  20. object — an aim
  21. stem — to come from
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. swing — to play on

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