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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 116 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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. kid — child
  3. rock — music
  4. bat — the animal
  5. scale — in music
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. pitch — completely
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. game — wild animals
  10. rock — a stone
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. kid — to tease
  13. game — a match
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. drill — the tool
  20. drill — army training
  21. drill — a practice
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. scale — size or range
  24. bat — for baseball

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