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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. pop — soda
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. net — for catching
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. net — after costs
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. stock — goods
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. pop — music
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. net — in sport
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pass — a permit
  24. stock — shares

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