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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. shower — to wash
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. cue — for pool
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. cue — a hint
  9. shower — rain
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — a coil
  15. spring — the season
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. dip — to sink
  20. cue — a signal
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. snap — to click
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. chair — a leader

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