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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. ground — crushed
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. prune — to trim
  8. season — of the year
  9. kid — child
  10. ground — a position
  11. rush — hurry
  12. ball — a dance
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. ground — the earth
  17. ball — a great time
  18. kid — to tease
  19. prune — to trim
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. season — in sport
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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