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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 had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. mug — to rob
  3. row — to paddle
  4. bat — the animal
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. clip — for paper
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. roll — a cake
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. clip — to cut
  15. lie — to recline
  16. row — a line
  17. pit — in a race
  18. mug — a face
  19. roll — a list
  20. clip — a video
  21. pit — a hole
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. mug — a cup
  24. pitcher — a jug

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