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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: bat · clip · drill · safe · club · tear · face · perch

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. drill — army training
  4. club — a group
  5. drill — a practice
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. tear — to rip
  8. tear — from crying
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. clip — to cut
  11. club — for dancing
  12. clip — for paper
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. bat — the animal
  15. face — to point toward
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. face — part of the head
  18. perch — the fish
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. tear — from crying
  21. face — to confront
  22. clip — a video
  23. club — for golf
  24. perch — for a bird

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