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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. clip — to cut
  3. clip — a video
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. key — in music
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. prune — to trim
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. rash — hasty
  13. key — the most important part
  14. board — to get on
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. prune — to trim
  17. clip — for paper
  18. board — a committee
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. dip — to sink
  21. key — for a lock
  22. rash — a series
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. bat — in an idiom

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