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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. 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 — for baseball
  2. season — of the year
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bass — the fish
  9. fork — in a road
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. season — in sport
  16. snap — to click
  17. bass — low music
  18. 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