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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. David sat on the ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. swing — to play on
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chest — a box
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. chest — of your body
  7. ground — crushed
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. dip — to sink
  10. ground — the earth
  11. swing — in golf
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. chair — a leader
  17. swing — music
  18. ball — a great time
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. ball — a dance
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. ground — a position
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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