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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  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. firm — a company
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. clip — to cut
  7. lean — thin
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. clip — a video
  10. ball — a dance
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. last — to go on
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. ball — a great time
  15. clip — for paper
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. bat — the animal
  18. lean — to bend
  19. firm — decided
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. firm — steady
  22. last — final
  23. last — finally
  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