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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. march — music
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. saw — the tool
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. kid — child
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. key — the most important part
  10. march — the month
  11. march — the month
  12. saw — the tool
  13. rush — hurry
  14. key — for a lock
  15. key — in music
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. kid — to tease
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. lie — to recline
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. plane — a tool

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