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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: bat · nail · lash · fall · bulb · clip · bank · mate

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. clip — for paper
  3. bank — for money
  4. clip — a video
  5. bank — for money
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. fall — to drop
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. mate — a partner
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. clip — to cut
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bank — of a river
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — the season
  22. mate — to breed
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. mate — a friend

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