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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. chest — a box
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. mark — a trace
  7. chest — of your body
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. fall — the season
  11. squash — to crush
  12. fall — to drop
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. plane — a tool
  15. chest — of your body
  16. fall — to drop
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. court — of law
  20. court — of a king
  21. squash — the sport
  22. mark — a grade
  23. bat — the animal
  24. court — for sport

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