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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: stick · wound · fine · club · clip · race · stem · swing

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. clip — a video
  3. swing — music
  4. stem — to come from
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. club — for golf
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. swing — to play on
  10. clip — to cut
  11. clip — for paper
  12. race — a contest
  13. club — a group
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. race — the arms race
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. wound — an injury
  20. fine — high quality
  21. club — for dancing
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. race — humankind
  24. swing — in golf

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