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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. face — to point toward
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. clip — a video
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. bat — the animal
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. clip — for paper
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. face — to confront
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. face — part of the head
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. foot — a measure
  17. dip — to sink
  18. key — for a lock
  19. plane — a tool
  20. key — in music
  21. key — the most important part
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. clip — to cut

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