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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. swing — music
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. scale — in music
  5. rash — a series
  6. swing — to play on
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. bat — the animal
  9. ball — a great time
  10. ball — a dance
  11. shower — rain
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. bear — the animal
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. swing — in golf
  18. rash — hasty
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. shower — to wash
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. ball — a round shape

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