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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'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. squash — to crush
  4. track — a song
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. game — wild animals
  7. current — of water
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. scale — size or range
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. current — happening now
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. game — a match
  18. track — to keep track
  19. scale — in music
  20. current — electric
  21. bat — the animal
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. track — a path
  24. jam — a tight spot

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