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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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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: ball · file · mouse · kid · suit · pit · bowl · content

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. suit — in cards
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. pit — in a race
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. ball — a dance
  9. content — the amount
  10. suit — clothes
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. file — a line of people
  13. suit — to fit
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. file — a tool
  16. pit — a hole
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. content — happy
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. file — a document
  22. kid — child
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. kid — to tease

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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