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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 120 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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. march — music
  4. land — a country
  5. court — of a king
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. march — the month
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. land — ground
  12. march — the month
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. stem — to come from
  15. court — for sport
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. bear — the animal
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. sharp — clever
  22. land — to come down
  23. court — of law
  24. stem — a stem cell

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