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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. pit — a hole
  3. swing — music
  4. row — a line
  5. row — to paddle
  6. clip — to cut
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. pit — in a race
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. clip — a video
  14. swing — to play on
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. clip — for paper
  20. bark — to shout
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. swing — in golf

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