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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. game — wild animals
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fine — all right
  7. game — a match
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. cold — an illness
  12. staff — employees
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. staff — a stick
  15. staff — employees
  16. cold — not warm
  17. season — of the year
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. fine — high quality
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. season — in sport
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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