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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. fine — all right
  5. kid — to tease
  6. fall — to drop
  7. pitch — completely
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. rock — a stone
  10. fall — to drop
  11. kick — in football
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. fine — high quality
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. kid — child
  18. rock — music
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. band — a music group
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. fall — the season
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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