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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. toast — bread
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. file — a tool
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. snap — to click
  9. lie — to recline
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. clip — for paper
  12. season — in sport
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. season — of the year
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. file — a line of people
  18. file — a document
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. clip — to cut
  24. clip — a video

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