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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. scale — size or range
  3. net — in sport
  4. lie — to recline
  5. bat — the animal
  6. net — for catching
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. season — of the year
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. net — after costs
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. scale — in music
  14. row — to paddle
  15. season — in sport
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. chair — a leader
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. chair — to sit on

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