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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 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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. game — a match
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. game — wild animals
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. club — a group
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. club — for golf
  10. ground — a position
  11. mine — for digging
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. club — for dancing
  16. prune — to trim
  17. prune — to trim
  18. ground — crushed
  19. roll — a list
  20. ground — the earth
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. roll — a cake
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. roll — on a roll

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