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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 · bat · rush · club · mouse · stem · dip · wound

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. club — a group
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. rush — hurry
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. wound — an injury
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. bat — the animal
  17. stem — to come from
  18. club — for golf
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. club — for dancing
  21. ball — a great time
  22. wound — an injury
  23. dip — to sink
  24. ball — a round shape

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