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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 120 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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. hand — help
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. face — to confront
  5. hand — in cards
  6. pass — a permit
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. face — to point toward
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. last — final
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. bass — the fish
  15. rush — hurry
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. face — part of the head
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. bass — low music
  21. last — to go on
  22. last — finally
  23. perch — the fish
  24. perch — for a bird

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