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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. lean — thin
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. ball — a dance
  9. chest — of your body
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. chest — of your body
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. plane — a tool
  17. lean — to bend
  18. chest — a box
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. branch — a division
  24. plane — an aircraft

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