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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: rush · racket · mug · bat · kid · wave · cold · mark

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. mark — a grade
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. kid — to tease
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bat — the animal
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. rush — hurry
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. mug — to rob
  19. kid — child
  20. cold — not warm
  21. mug — a cup
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. mark — a trace
  24. cold — an illness

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