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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. squash — to crush
  3. sharp — clever
  4. squash — the sport
  5. net — in sport
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. wound — an injury
  9. prune — to trim
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. bore — to tire
  14. wound — an injury
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. net — for catching
  21. plane — a tool
  22. prune — to trim
  23. net — after costs
  24. bore — to drill

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