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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. bat — the animal
  6. ball — a dance
  7. kid — to tease
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. kid — child
  10. spring — of water
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. dip — to sink
  13. present — the time now
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. spring — a coil
  18. spring — the season
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. present — a gift
  21. present — there
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bowl — a dish

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