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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. mine — for digging
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. chip — to eat
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. pit — a hole
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. net — for catching
  11. pit — in a race
  12. net — after costs
  13. bat — the animal
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. chip — for betting
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. net — in sport
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mine — an explosive

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