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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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. chest — a box
  4. firm — decided
  5. fine — high quality
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. firm — a company
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. scale — size or range
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. chest — of your body
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. fine — all right
  17. chest — of your body
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. bat — the animal
  23. scale — in music
  24. firm — steady

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