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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. wind — moving air
  4. scale — size or range
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. scale — in music
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. chest — a box
  9. vault — a safe
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. bat — the animal
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. chest — of your body
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. wind — moving air
  23. kick — in football
  24. bat — in an idiom

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