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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  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. lie — an untruth
  2. drill — army training
  3. clip — a video
  4. net — after costs
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. mug — a face
  8. drill — the tool
  9. kid — child
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. clip — for paper
  12. clip — to cut
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bat — the animal
  16. net — for catching
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. mug — a cup
  19. net — in sport
  20. drill — a practice
  21. kid — to tease
  22. lie — to recline
  23. mug — to rob
  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