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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. ball — a great time
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. ground — a position
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. ground — crushed
  11. fork — in a road
  12. kid — to tease
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. ball — a dance
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. ground — the earth
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. dip — to sink
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — an injury
  23. kid — child
  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