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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. ball — a dance
  5. pop — music
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. net — for catching
  9. pop — soda
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. fine — high quality
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. ball — a great time
  14. net — in sport
  15. scale — in music
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. fine — all right
  19. scale — size or range
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. net — after costs
  23. pop — to visit
  24. mine — belonging to me

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