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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. ground — a position
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. net — in sport
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. scale — in music
  7. face — to point toward
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — an injury
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. net — for catching
  13. scale — size or range
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. net — after costs
  16. face — part of the head
  17. vault — a safe
  18. chair — a leader
  19. ground — the earth
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. ground — crushed
  22. face — to confront
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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