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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. lie — to recline
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. key — for a lock
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. rest — a break
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. kid — child
  12. squash — the sport
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. key — the most important part
  16. squash — to crush
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — what's left
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. kid — to tease
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. key — in music
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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