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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  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. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. kid — to tease
  5. drill — a practice
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. rest — what's left
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. rest — what's left
  11. drill — the tool
  12. branch — a division
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. wound — an injury
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. kid — child
  17. content — the amount
  18. ball — a great time
  19. ball — a dance
  20. drill — army training
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. content — happy
  23. wound — an injury
  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