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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. bat — the animal
  5. chest — a box
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. cap — a hat
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. chest — of your body
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. game — wild animals
  15. cap — of ice
  16. present — there
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. present — the time now
  20. cap — a lid
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. present — a gift
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. game — a match

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