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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 116 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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. net — for catching
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. bat — the animal
  6. mug — a face
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. pass — a permit
  9. mug — to rob
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. pop — music
  12. pop — to visit
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. scale — in music
  15. mug — a cup
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. cold — an illness
  19. scale — size or range
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. pop — soda
  22. cold — not warm
  23. net — after costs
  24. pass — to succeed

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