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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: can · file · stick · lie · bat · spell · patient · arm

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. bat — the animal
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. can — to be able to
  7. lie — to recline
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. spell — magic
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. spell — letters
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. file — a line of people
  19. can — a tin
  20. file — a tool
  21. can — a tin
  22. spell — a short time
  23. file — a document
  24. patient — a sick person

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