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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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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: trunk · kid · pitch · bat · mouse · mate · straw · racket

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  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. mate — to breed
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. pitch — completely
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. kid — to tease
  17. mate — a partner
  18. kid — child
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. mate — a friend
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. racket — for tennis
  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