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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. chest — a box
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. net — for catching
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. club — for dancing
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. net — after costs
  12. march — the month
  13. club — a group
  14. mug — a face
  15. club — for golf
  16. capital — money
  17. bat — the animal
  18. mug — a cup
  19. mug — to rob
  20. capital — a city
  21. march — music
  22. deal — to handle
  23. net — in sport
  24. march — the month

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