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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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. bulb — for light
  4. scale — size or range
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. tear — to rip
  7. bulb — for light
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. season — of the year
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. hand — in cards
  12. hand — help
  13. saw — the tool
  14. tear — from crying
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. saw — the tool
  17. tear — from crying
  18. season — in sport
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. scale — in music
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. temple — a place of worship

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