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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. rock — a stone
  4. rest — a break
  5. bass — low music
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. spring — of water
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. rest — what's left
  10. bass — the fish
  11. sharp — clever
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. rock — music
  14. rest — what's left
  15. shower — to wash
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. spring — the season
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. spring — a coil
  21. snap — to click
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. shower — rain
  24. rock — to move gently

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