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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bat — the animal
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. court — of a king
  10. date — the fruit
  11. wound — an injury
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. court — for sport
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. wound — an injury
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. court — of law
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. patient — a sick person

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