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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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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: temple · bowl · rest · sharp · season · bat · racket · track

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. season — in sport
  6. season — of the year
  7. bat — the animal
  8. track — to keep track
  9. rest — what's left
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. sharp — clever
  17. track — a path
  18. rest — what's left
  19. rest — a break
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. bowl — a football final
  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