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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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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: cold · hide · stand · date · kid · bat · racket · charge

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. date — the fruit
  3. charge — in control
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. cold — not warm
  6. charge — a price
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. stand — to bear
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. kid — to tease
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. kid — child
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. bat — the animal
  22. charge — electricity
  23. cold — an illness
  24. hide — to keep secret

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