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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. object — a thing
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. object — an aim
  5. clip — a video
  6. object — to protest
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. clip — to cut
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. track — a path
  12. clip — for paper
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. spell — a short time
  16. spell — magic
  17. spring — the season
  18. spring — of water
  19. track — a song
  20. spell — letters
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. spring — a coil
  24. track — to keep track

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