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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 116 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: net · bat · wound · racket · wake · ball · rest · rule

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. bat — the animal
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. rule — a law
  7. net — after costs
  8. ball — a great time
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. rest — a break
  12. ball — a dance
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. wound — an injury
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. rule — government
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. wake — a trail
  21. net — in sport
  22. net — for catching
  23. rest — what's left
  24. bat — for baseball

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