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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. rock — a stone
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. fine — high quality
  6. rock — music
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. saw — the tool
  9. clip — for paper
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. hand — help
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. deal — to handle
  15. fine — all right
  16. saw — the tool
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. clip — to cut
  19. hand — in cards
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. clip — a video
  24. bowl — to 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