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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. dip — to sink
  4. file — a tool
  5. court — of a king
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. lie — to recline
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. sharp — clever
  12. clip — for paper
  13. clip — to cut
  14. deal — to handle
  15. court — for sport
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. file — a document
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. clip — a video
  24. file — a line of people

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