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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. band — a ring
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. present — the time now
  7. cell — in biology
  8. present — there
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. scale — in music
  11. cell — a phone
  12. scale — size or range
  13. present — a gift
  14. sharp — clever
  15. kick — in football
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. band — a music group
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. cell — in a prison

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