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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 don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. chip — to eat
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. present — the time now
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. kid — to tease
  9. mate — a partner
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. mate — a friend
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. present — a gift
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. kid — child
  17. plane — a tool
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. chip — for betting
  20. mate — to breed
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. present — there
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. bat — the animal

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