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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. ball — a great time
  3. snap — to click
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. game — a match
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. roll — a cake
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. ball — a dance
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. craft — a skill
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. present — a gift
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. game — wild animals
  20. present — the time now
  21. craft — boats
  22. roll — a list
  23. bat — the animal
  24. craft — a handicraft

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