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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. stock — shares
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. pop — to visit
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. stock — goods
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. cell — a phone
  15. bat — the animal
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. pop — soda
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. pop — music
  22. cell — in biology
  23. band — a music group
  24. stock — a soup base

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