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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. fine — high quality
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. club — for dancing
  6. cell — in biology
  7. club — a group
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bark — to shout
  10. craft — boats
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. land — to come down
  15. craft — a skill
  16. land — ground
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. cell — a phone
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. land — a country
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. fine — all right
  24. club — for golf

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