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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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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: mouse · kid · club · chest · trunk · pass · bat · hand

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. pass — a permit
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. kid — child
  7. chest — of your body
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. hand — help
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. chest — a box
  13. bat — the animal
  14. club — for dancing
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. chest — of your body
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. hand — in cards
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. kid — to tease
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. club — a group
  24. club — for golf

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