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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. clip — to cut
  6. cell — a phone
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. cell — in biology
  11. clip — for paper
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. lie — to recline
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. clip — a video
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. date — the fruit
  23. roll — a list
  24. roll — a cake

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