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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. clip — for paper
  3. season — of the year
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. cell — in biology
  6. staff — employees
  7. cell — a phone
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. clip — a video
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. season — in sport
  13. staff — employees
  14. staff — a stick
  15. mug — a face
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. clip — to cut
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. mug — a cup
  21. lie — to recline
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. mug — to rob

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