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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bat — the animal
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. clip — a video
  8. cell — in biology
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. fine — high quality
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. fall — to drop
  15. clip — to cut
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. fine — all right
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. saw — the tool
  21. fall — the season
  22. fall — to drop
  23. clip — for paper
  24. saw — the tool

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