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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. capital — money
  4. band — a ring
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. plane — a tool
  8. bore — to tire
  9. spring — a coil
  10. bore — to drill
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. stock — goods
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. capital — a city
  18. spring — of water
  19. spring — the season
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. stock — shares
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. band — a music group
  24. fan — a supporter

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