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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 120 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. season — of the year
  3. key — in music
  4. kid — to tease
  5. content — happy
  6. cue — a signal
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. cue — for pool
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — child
  11. season — in sport
  12. content — the amount
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. key — the most important part
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. pit — a hole
  18. key — for a lock
  19. wake — a trail
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. cue — a hint
  24. pit — in a race

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