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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 116 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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. present — there
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. dip — to sink
  8. swing — in golf
  9. swing — to play on
  10. rash — hasty
  11. present — the time now
  12. rash — a series
  13. clip — for paper
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. swing — music
  16. row — a line
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. row — to paddle
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. present — a gift
  21. clip — to cut
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. clip — a video
  24. dip — to dunk

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