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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. chest — a box
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — of your body
  10. wind — moving air
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. mine — for digging
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — temperature
  21. wind — moving air
  22. dip — to sink
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. sharp — clever

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