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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 was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bound — tied together
  5. mark — a grade
  6. bound — certain
  7. present — a gift
  8. perch — the fish
  9. present — there
  10. bound — obliged
  11. mark — a trace
  12. ball — a dance
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. deal — to handle
  18. pop — to visit
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. pop — soda
  22. present — the time now
  23. pop — music
  24. deal — a big deal

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