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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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. cell — in biology
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. cell — a phone
  8. net — after costs
  9. pound — a weight
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. band — a music group
  12. net — for catching
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. perch — the fish
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. game — a match
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. band — a ring
  20. deal — to handle
  21. game — wild animals
  22. net — in sport
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. ball — a dance

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