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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: track · ball · ground · bat · rash · bore · arm · chair

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. track — a path
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. rash — hasty
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. ball — a great time
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. bore — to drill
  10. ground — a position
  11. track — a song
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. ball — a dance
  14. track — to keep track
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. ground — the earth
  19. chair — a leader
  20. bore — to tire
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. rash — a series
  24. bat — in an idiom

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