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

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. pit — a hole
  9. pit — in a race
  10. key — for a lock
  11. key — the most important part
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. clip — a video
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. saw — the tool
  19. key — in music
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. clip — for paper
  23. bat — the animal
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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