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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's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. key — for a lock
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. sharp — clever
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. key — in music
  8. key — the most important part
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. chair — a leader
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bass — the fish
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. shower — rain
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. rock — a stone
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. rock — music
  21. bass — low music
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. chair — to sit on

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