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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.

Words on the sheet
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: bat · scale · fan · racket · dip · mug · chest · fall

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. fall — the season
  3. fall — to drop
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chest — a box
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. dip — to sink
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. mug — a cup
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. mug — a face
  19. mug — to rob
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. scale — size or range
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. scale — in music
  24. fall — to drop

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