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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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468
Word bank
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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 little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. pit — a hole
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. pit — in a race
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. march — the month
  14. march — the month
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cold — an illness
  17. bat — the animal
  18. land — a country
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. lie — to recline
  21. land — ground
  22. march — music
  23. land — to come down
  24. bear — the animal

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