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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. capital — money
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. can — a tin
  8. kid — child
  9. vault — a safe
  10. kid — to tease
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. can — a tin
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. capital — a city
  16. content — happy
  17. can — to be able to
  18. bat — the animal
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. plane — a tool
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. content — the amount

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