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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 120 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. ground — crushed
  4. snap — to click
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pitch — completely
  8. chest — a box
  9. bat — the animal
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. tube — the underground
  12. ground — a position
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. present — the time now
  15. ball — a great time
  16. present — there
  17. ball — a dance
  18. tube — a container
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. present — a gift
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. chest — of your body
  23. ground — the earth
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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