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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. ball — a dance
  5. spring — of water
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. club — a group
  8. face — to point toward
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. face — to confront
  11. spring — a coil
  12. cold — not warm
  13. spring — the season
  14. club — for dancing
  15. saw — the tool
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. ball — a great time
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. saw — the tool
  21. face — part of the head
  22. club — for golf
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. cold — an illness

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