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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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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: leaves · mouse · stand · fall · clip · racket · bat · land

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — to drop
  4. clip — for paper
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. fall — the season
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. land — ground
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. stand — to bear
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. land — a country
  20. land — to come down
  21. bat — the animal
  22. clip — a video
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. racket — for tennis

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