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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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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. mate — a partner
  4. file — a tool
  5. mug — a face
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. kid — to tease
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — child
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. mate — a friend
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pit — a hole
  15. file — a line of people
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. file — a document
  18. dip — to sink
  19. mug — to rob
  20. lie — to recline
  21. bat — the animal
  22. mate — to breed
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. mug — a cup

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