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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bat · clip · hand · firm · patient · row · board · toast

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. clip — to cut
  3. row — to paddle
  4. firm — a company
  5. firm — decided
  6. bat — the animal
  7. board — a committee
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. hand — in cards
  11. firm — steady
  12. clip — a video
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. board — to get on
  15. toast — bread
  16. hand — help
  17. row — a line
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. clip — for paper
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. bat — in an idiom

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