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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. ball — a dance
  10. ball — a great time
  11. kid — to tease
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. chair — a leader
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. branch — a division
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. sharp — clever
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. chair — a professorship

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