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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bark — to shout
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. mate — to breed
  6. fall — the season
  7. lie — to recline
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. file — a line of people
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. mate — a partner
  14. mate — a friend
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. rash — hasty
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. fall — to drop
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. rash — a series
  21. file — a document
  22. bat — the animal
  23. file — a tool
  24. fall — to drop

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