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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. clip — for paper
  3. cold — not warm
  4. cell — a phone
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. plane — a tool
  8. clip — a video
  9. mark — a grade
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. mark — a trace
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. clip — to cut
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bat — the animal
  21. fine — all right
  22. cold — an illness
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. fine — high quality

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