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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 sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. deal — to handle
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. bat — the animal
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. march — the month
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. march — music
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. march — the month
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. lie — to recline
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. wake — a trail
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bear — the animal

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