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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 carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. cell — a phone
  7. dip — to sink
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. wind — moving air
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. capital — a city
  14. cell — in biology
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. capital — money
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. wind — moving air
  24. pitcher — a jug

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