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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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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: foot · wind · bat · can · lie · tear · clip · pitch

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. tear — from crying
  8. can — a tin
  9. wind — moving air
  10. lie — to recline
  11. can — a tin
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. clip — a video
  16. can — to be able to
  17. pitch — completely
  18. clip — to cut
  19. foot — a measure
  20. clip — for paper
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — to rip
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. bat — the animal

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