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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 116 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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. hand — help
  5. spell — magic
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bat — the animal
  8. scale — size or range
  9. charge — electricity
  10. club — for golf
  11. club — for dancing
  12. club — a group
  13. spell — a short time
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. charge — in control
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. charge — a price
  20. scale — in music
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. hand — in cards
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. spell — letters

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