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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. chest — of your body
  4. drill — army training
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. staff — employees
  7. rock — a stone
  8. chest — a box
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. rock — music
  13. bear — the animal
  14. staff — a stick
  15. wound — an injury
  16. drill — a practice
  17. drill — the tool
  18. roll — a list
  19. chest — of your body
  20. staff — employees
  21. bear — the animal
  22. wound — an injury
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. roll — on a roll

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