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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 120 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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. clip — for paper
  4. clip — a video
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. chest — of your body
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. chest — a box
  10. chest — of your body
  11. lie — to recline
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. clip — to cut
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. key — in music
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. key — the most important part
  20. key — for a lock
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. bat — the animal
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. kick — in football

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