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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. bat — the animal
  3. tube — a container
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. pitch — completely
  8. race — humankind
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. race — the arms race
  13. tube — the underground
  14. race — a contest
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. mate — a friend
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. mate — a partner

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