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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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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: straw · hand · fine · clip · rest · swing · rock · leaves

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — for paper
  3. clip — a video
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. rest — a break
  6. rest — what's left
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. swing — in golf
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rock — music
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. swing — to play on
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. swing — music
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. rock — a stone
  20. fine — all right
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. hand — in cards
  23. hand — help
  24. fine — high quality

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