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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. sharp — clever
  5. game — wild animals
  6. last — finally
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. branch — a division
  9. last — to go on
  10. present — there
  11. last — final
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. present — the time now
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. present — a gift
  17. game — a match
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — obliged
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. bound — certain
  24. ball — a great time

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