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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 surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. craft — boats
  3. clip — to cut
  4. lie — to recline
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. mark — a trace
  7. clip — for paper
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. clip — a video
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. season — in sport
  17. mark — a grade
  18. bat — the animal
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. fork — in a road
  21. craft — a skill
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. season — of the year
  24. craft — a handicraft

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