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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 120 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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. clip — for paper
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. saw — the tool
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. charge — a price
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bat — the animal
  9. fine — all right
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. bear — the animal
  13. clip — to cut
  14. stand — to bear
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. bear — the animal
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. clip — a video
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. charge — in control
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. charge — electricity
  24. fine — high quality

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