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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 116 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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mate — a partner
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. bear — the animal
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. bear — the animal
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. mate — a friend
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. bass — low music
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. mate — to breed
  17. field — a subject
  18. bass — the fish

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