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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 120 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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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: bear · capital · row · chest · bat · snap · pass · lie

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. chest — a box
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. capital — a city
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. row — a line
  12. lie — to recline
  13. chest — of your body
  14. snap — to click
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bat — the animal
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. row — to paddle
  20. capital — money
  21. chest — of your body
  22. pass — a permit
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bat — in an idiom

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