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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: wave · bass · hand · clip · face · rule · bat · lie

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. rule — a law
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. bass — the fish
  5. hand — help
  6. clip — a video
  7. clip — to cut
  8. bat — the animal
  9. clip — for paper
  10. face — part of the head
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. face — to point toward
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. rule — government
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. lie — to recline
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. face — to confront
  24. bass — low music

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