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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. current — of water
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. current — happening now
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. wound — an injury
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. bat — the animal
  20. current — electric
  21. dip — to sink
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. plane — a tool
  24. racket — for tennis

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