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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. squash — the sport
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. wind — moving air
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. pitch — completely
  10. prune — to trim
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. band — a ring
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. prune — to trim
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. squash — to crush
  18. perch — the fish
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. wind — moving air
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. band — a music group
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. prune — the fruit

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