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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 120 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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. pitch — completely
  4. spring — the season
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. craft — boats
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. kid — child
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. craft — a skill
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. spring — a coil
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. kid — to tease
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. wake — a trail
  23. spring — of water
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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