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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. pop — to visit
  3. spring — the season
  4. pop — music
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. bat — the animal
  7. board — a committee
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. rest — a break
  10. spring — a coil
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. board — to get on
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. spring — of water
  16. rest — what's left
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — of the year
  21. pop — soda
  22. rest — what's left
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. season — to add flavour

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