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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. face — part of the head
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. bat — the animal
  5. fall — to drop
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. fall — the season
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. fall — to drop
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. face — to confront
  12. kick — in football
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. rest — a break
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. file — a tool
  19. kid — child
  20. rest — what's left
  21. face — to point toward
  22. file — a line of people
  23. kid — to tease
  24. file — a document

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