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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. pitch — completely
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. hand — help
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. band — a music group
  14. wind — moving air
  15. band — a ring
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. hand — in cards
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. chair — a leader
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. bat — for baseball

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