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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ruler · bat · game · racket · press · kid · object · bay

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. object — a thing
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. kid — to tease
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. game — a match
  11. object — to protest
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. press — a publisher
  14. kid — child
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. bat — the animal
  18. press — newspapers
  19. game — wild animals
  20. object — an aim
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bay — a horse colour

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