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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  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 round shape
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. ball — a great time
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. mug — a cup
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. cell — a phone
  10. mine — for digging
  11. snap — to click
  12. date — the fruit
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. mug — to rob
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. mug — a face
  19. chair — a leader
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. cell — in biology
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  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