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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. rest — what's left
  7. scale — size or range
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. scale — in music
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. rest — what's left
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. bat — the animal
  18. snap — to click
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. mine — for digging
  23. prune — to trim
  24. rest — a break

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