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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 124 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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. fall — the season
  3. clip — a video
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. ground — a position
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. fall — to drop
  10. ground — crushed
  11. rest — a break
  12. ground — the earth
  13. rest — what's left
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. rest — what's left
  16. clip — for paper
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. fall — to drop
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. clip — to cut
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. coach — a trainer

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