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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. ball — a great time
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. ball — a dance
  6. fine — all right
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. pop — to visit
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. field — a subject
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. fine — high quality
  13. field — farmland
  14. band — a music group
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. band — a ring
  18. pop — music
  19. pop — soda
  20. field — for sport
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. content — happy
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. content — the amount

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