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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. hand — help
  3. key — for a lock
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. rock — music
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — an injury
  8. scale — in music
  9. present — the time now
  10. degree — from a university
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. rock — a stone
  13. degree — an amount
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. present — a gift
  16. key — the most important part
  17. degree — temperature
  18. hand — in cards
  19. key — in music
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. present — there
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. scale — size or range
  24. rock — to move gently

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