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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: pit · file · ball · patient · rock · rush · content · bat

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. ball — a dance
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. content — the amount
  7. file — a line of people
  8. content — happy
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. file — a document
  11. pit — a hole
  12. ball — a great time
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. rock — music
  17. rock — a stone
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. rush — hurry
  22. file — a tool
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. pit — in a race

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