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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 120 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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mug — a cup
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. net — after costs
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. pit — a hole
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. pit — in a race
  13. cold — not warm
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. squash — to crush
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. prune — to trim
  18. mug — to rob
  19. net — for catching
  20. squash — the sport
  21. net — in sport
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. cold — an illness
  24. mug — a face

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