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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. clip — for paper
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. lean — to bend
  6. row — to paddle
  7. shower — rain
  8. lie — to recline
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. rule — a law
  11. row — a line
  12. clip — a video
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. clip — to cut
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. pit — in a race
  18. shower — to wash
  19. cell — a phone
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. lean — thin
  22. rule — government
  23. cell — in biology
  24. lie — an untruth

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