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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ball — a great time
  5. squash — the sport
  6. spring — the season
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. tube — the underground
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. kick — in football
  11. tube — a container
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. game — a match
  15. ground — crushed
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. ground — a position
  18. spring — of water
  19. spring — a coil
  20. squash — to crush
  21. ball — a dance
  22. game — wild animals
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. tube — in a tire

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