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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: chest · field · game · mug · perch · bound · racket · bat

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. game — wild animals
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. chest — of your body
  7. mug — a face
  8. field — farmland
  9. perch — the fish
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. bound — obliged
  13. field — a subject
  14. chest — a box
  15. bound — tied together
  16. bat — the animal
  17. field — for sport
  18. mug — to rob
  19. mug — a cup
  20. chest — of your body
  21. game — a match
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bound — certain

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