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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. rash — hasty
  3. snap — to click
  4. squash — the sport
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. squash — to crush
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. rash — a series
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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