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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: racket · mug · ground · wake · kid · suit · bat · spell

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. suit — to fit
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. suit — in cards
  5. kid — to tease
  6. mug — a cup
  7. ground — a position
  8. spell — magic
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. mug — to rob
  12. wake — a trail
  13. spell — a short time
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. ground — the earth
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. bat — the animal
  18. mug — a face
  19. ground — crushed
  20. spell — letters
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. suit — clothes

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