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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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. swing — to play on
  4. spring — the season
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. rock — music
  7. tube — the underground
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mark — a grade
  10. swing — in golf
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. spring — a coil
  15. rock — a stone
  16. spring — of water
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. mark — a trace
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. tube — a container
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. swing — music

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