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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. shower — to wash
  3. object — an aim
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. rash — a series
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. foot — a measure
  10. lean — to bend
  11. bear — the animal
  12. clip — to cut
  13. shower — rain
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. object — a thing
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. clip — for paper
  19. rash — hasty
  20. clip — a video
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. object — to protest
  24. lean — thin

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