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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 · kick · perch · game · spring · fan · bat · bank

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. kick — in football
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. spring — a coil
  8. bank — for money
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. ball — a great time
  11. game — a match
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. ball — a dance
  15. bank — of a river
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bank — for money
  19. spring — of water
  20. perch — the fish
  21. spring — the season
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. game — wild animals
  24. fan — a supporter

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