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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. spell — letters
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. spell — a short time
  5. pass — a permit
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. ball — a dance
  8. spell — magic
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. dip — to sink
  13. last — final
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. stock — shares
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. last — to go on
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. stock — goods
  24. last — finally

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