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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.

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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: file · perch · clip · bat · chair · straw · suit · dip

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. perch — the fish
  3. dip — to sink
  4. clip — to cut
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. clip — for paper
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. file — a line of people
  15. clip — a video
  16. suit — in cards
  17. chair — a leader
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. suit — to fit
  21. file — a document
  22. file — a tool
  23. bat — the animal
  24. suit — clothes

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