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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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bat — the animal
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. net — in sport
  7. court — of a king
  8. board — to get on
  9. kid — to tease
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. board — a committee
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. net — for catching
  15. ball — a dance
  16. net — after costs
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. court — for sport
  19. court — of law
  20. kid — child
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chest — a box
  23. ball — a great time
  24. calf — of the leg

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