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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. scale — size or range
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. bat — the animal
  10. lie — to recline
  11. content — happy
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. content — the amount
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. fall — the season
  20. stem — to come from
  21. fall — to drop
  22. scale — in music
  23. fall — to drop
  24. bat — in an idiom

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