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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. season — of the year
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. row — a line
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. last — to go on
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. cap — a hat
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. season — in sport
  16. club — a group
  17. last — finally
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. club — for dancing
  20. row — to paddle
  21. cap — of ice
  22. cap — a lid
  23. last — final
  24. club — for golf

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