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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. suit — to fit
  4. suit — in cards
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. season — in sport
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. pop — music
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. cell — a phone
  14. season — of the year
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. pop — to visit
  18. wound — an injury
  19. game — a match
  20. game — wild animals
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. suit — clothes
  24. pop — soda

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