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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. stem — to come from
  6. file — a line of people
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. file — a tool
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. bat — the animal
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. file — a document
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. pound — a weight
  24. stem — of a plant

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