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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. kid — to tease
  4. wake — a trail
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. content — happy
  7. wound — an injury
  8. kid — child
  9. content — the amount
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. rash — hasty
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. mate — a partner
  17. mate — to breed
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. rash — a series
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. wound — an injury
  23. mate — a friend
  24. racket — a loud noise

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