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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. clip — for paper
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. mate — a friend
  5. track — to keep track
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. craft — a skill
  9. mate — to breed
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. plane — a tool
  12. court — for sport
  13. mate — a partner
  14. court — of a king
  15. track — a song
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bat — the animal
  19. clip — to cut
  20. court — of law
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. track — a path
  23. clip — a video
  24. craft — boats

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