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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 120 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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mark — a grade
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. pound — a weight
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. ground — the earth
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. ground — crushed
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bass — low music
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. mark — a trace
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. mine — for digging
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. bat — the animal
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. ground — a position

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