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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: chair · firm · lash · stand · mate · date · clip · bat

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. clip — a video
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. date — the fruit
  5. mate — a partner
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. firm — steady
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. mate — to breed
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. clip — to cut
  14. mate — a friend
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. stand — to bear
  17. bat — the animal
  18. chair — a leader
  19. firm — decided
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. firm — a company
  24. date — on the calendar

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