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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. pit — in a race
  4. pit — a hole
  5. ball — a great time
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. band — a ring
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. degree — from a university
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. band — a music group
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. degree — an amount
  16. degree — temperature
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. spell — magic
  19. ball — a dance
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. bat — the animal
  22. deal — to handle
  23. spell — letters
  24. spell — a short time

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