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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. shower — to wash
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. sharp — clever
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. ball — a great time
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. pass — a permit
  19. shower — rain
  20. kick — in football
  21. ball — a dance
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. mine — for digging
  24. ball — a round shape

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