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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. rock — a stone
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. cell — a phone
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. current — electric
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. rock — music
  11. current — of water
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. current — happening now
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. cell — in biology
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bowl — a football final

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