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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 116 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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. firm — decided
  3. rash — hasty
  4. file — a line of people
  5. firm — a company
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. rash — a series
  8. season — of the year
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. land — ground
  13. land — a country
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. firm — steady
  16. season — in sport
  17. land — to come down
  18. ball — a great time
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. file — a tool
  21. file — a document
  22. pit — a hole
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. pit — in a race

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