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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 lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. board — a committee
  3. chest — of your body
  4. ball — a great time
  5. clip — to cut
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. ball — a dance
  9. mine — for digging
  10. pit — in a race
  11. board — to get on
  12. clip — a video
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. cue — for pool
  15. clip — for paper
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. pit — a hole
  19. cue — a signal
  20. cue — a hint
  21. chest — of your body
  22. lie — to recline
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. ball — a round shape

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