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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: march · staff · swing · bore · clip · suit · mate · leaves

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. mate — to breed
  3. clip — to cut
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. march — the month
  6. swing — in golf
  7. bore — to tire
  8. clip — for paper
  9. staff — employees
  10. suit — in cards
  11. bore — to drill
  12. swing — to play on
  13. clip — a video
  14. suit — clothes
  15. swing — music
  16. mate — a partner
  17. staff — employees
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. march — music
  20. suit — to fit
  21. march — the month
  22. mate — a friend
  23. staff — a stick
  24. bore — gave birth

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