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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. clip — for paper
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bat — the animal
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. clip — a video
  13. ball — a great time
  14. plane — a tool
  15. clip — to cut
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. hand — in cards
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. ball — a dance

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