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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. chest — of your body
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. rock — music
  8. bank — of a river
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. bank — for money
  11. bore — to drill
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. bore — to tire
  16. foot — a measure
  17. chest — a box
  18. bank — for money
  19. bat — the animal
  20. clip — a video
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. rock — a stone
  23. clip — for paper
  24. chest — of your body

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