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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: lie · bear · arm · board · clip · field · dip · row

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. clip — a video
  3. field — a subject
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. clip — to cut
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. field — for sport
  8. lie — to recline
  9. bear — the animal
  10. board — a committee
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. bear — the animal
  13. board — to get on
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. clip — for paper
  16. field — farmland
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. dip — to sink
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. row — a line
  23. row — to paddle
  24. board — a flat piece

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