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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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. spell — magic
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. spring — a coil
  8. hand — in cards
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. mate — a friend
  11. spring — the season
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. cell — in biology
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. spring — of water
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. mate — a partner
  18. kick — in football
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. hand — help
  21. mate — to breed
  22. spell — a short time
  23. spell — letters
  24. bay — a horse colour

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