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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. bat — the animal
  7. court — of law
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. ball — a great time
  11. ground — the earth
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. ground — a position
  15. shower — to wash
  16. ground — crushed
  17. ball — a dance
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. court — for sport
  20. court — of a king
  21. rush — hurry
  22. shower — rain
  23. perch — the fish
  24. pitch — completely

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