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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. craft — boats
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. drill — army training
  5. bank — for money
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. drill — a practice
  8. craft — a skill
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. ground — the earth
  11. drill — the tool
  12. bank — for money
  13. game — wild animals
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ground — a position
  17. bank — of a river
  18. game — a match

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