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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. saw — the tool
  3. march — the month
  4. march — music
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. cell — in biology
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. ground — the earth
  13. kick — in football
  14. saw — the tool
  15. dip — to sink
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. cell — a phone
  20. ground — a position
  21. ground — crushed
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. march — the month
  24. cell — in a prison

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