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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 was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. net — after costs
  3. rock — music
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. rock — a stone
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. net — for catching
  10. ball — a dance
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. lie — to recline
  15. content — happy
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. content — the amount
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. net — in sport
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. ball — a great time
  24. bat — the animal

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