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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 120 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'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. staff — employees
  3. wake — a trail
  4. squash — to crush
  5. foot — a measure
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. rest — what's left
  16. staff — a stick
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. bat — the animal
  19. rest — what's left
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. staff — employees
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. rest — a break

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