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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. cell — in biology
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. lie — to recline
  6. fall — the season
  7. row — a line
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. bark — to shout
  14. bat — the animal
  15. fall — to drop
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. cell — a phone
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. fall — to drop
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. row — to paddle

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