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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mate — to breed
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cold — an illness
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. ground — a position
  8. mate — a friend
  9. fork — in a road
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. stand — to bear
  13. bass — low music
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. game — a match
  17. bass — the fish
  18. game — wild animals
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. ground — the earth
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. mate — a partner
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. ground — crushed

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