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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. bat — the animal
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. pit — a hole
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. swing — to play on
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. mate — to breed
  11. pit — in a race
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. swing — in golf
  14. swing — music
  15. mate — a friend
  16. mate — a partner
  17. cold — not warm
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. cold — an illness
  21. lie — to recline
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. racket — for tennis

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