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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: staff · kick · racket · spring · bat · pop · land · mark

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. kick — in football
  3. land — a country
  4. staff — employees
  5. spring — of water
  6. staff — employees
  7. land — ground
  8. spring — the season
  9. pop — soda
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. mark — a grade
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. pop — to visit
  18. land — to come down
  19. pop — music
  20. staff — a stick
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. spring — a coil
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. bat — the animal

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