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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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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. face — part of the head
  3. ball — a dance
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. ball — a great time
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. face — to confront
  13. face — to point toward
  14. kid — child
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. object — a thing
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. lie — to recline
  20. object — to protest
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. kid — to tease
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — for baseball

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