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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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468
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: racket · prune · bat · content · ruler · rock · spell · dip

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. dip — to sink
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. rock — a stone
  6. content — the amount
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. prune — to trim
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. spell — a short time
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. spell — letters
  17. rock — music
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. spell — magic
  20. prune — to trim
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bat — the animal

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