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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. field — farmland
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. ball — a great time
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. staff — a stick
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. staff — employees
  15. field — for sport
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. roll — a list
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. pitch — completely
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. staff — employees
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. field — a subject
  24. roll — a cake

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