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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. pop — music
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. ball — a great time
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. wound — an injury
  10. squash — the sport
  11. sharp — clever
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. ball — a dance
  16. pop — to visit
  17. dip — to sink
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. bat — the animal
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pop — soda
  22. squash — to crush
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. plane — a tool

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