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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. bulb — for light
  3. ball — a dance
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. mark — a trace
  6. clip — a video
  7. scale — in music
  8. scale — size or range
  9. clip — for paper
  10. plane — a tool
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. cell — in biology
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. clip — to cut
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. cell — a phone
  20. mark — a grade
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. bulb — for light

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