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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 116 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: stand · swing · fall · fork · kick · pop · clip · bass

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. stand — to bear
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. clip — a video
  5. fork — in a road
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. pop — to visit
  8. fall — the season
  9. clip — for paper
  10. fall — to drop
  11. swing — music
  12. pop — music
  13. pop — soda
  14. fall — to drop
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. swing — in golf
  20. bass — low music
  21. clip — to cut
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bass — the fish
  24. kick — in football

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