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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 120 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: stand · swing · lie · clip · shower · present · cabinet · game

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. clip — for paper
  3. clip — a video
  4. present — a gift
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. game — a match
  10. lie — to recline
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. present — the time now
  13. present — there
  14. clip — to cut
  15. shower — rain
  16. swing — music
  17. stand — to bear
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. game — wild animals
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. shower — to wash
  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