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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. face — to confront
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. rash — hasty
  10. foot — a measure
  11. vault — a safe
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. face — part of the head
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. bat — the animal
  20. cold — an illness
  21. face — to point toward
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. rash — a series
  24. racket — for tennis

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