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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. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. pop — music
  4. mine — for digging
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. court — of a king
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. field — for sport
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. court — for sport
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. court — of law
  15. pop — to visit
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. field — a subject
  18. field — farmland
  19. scale — in music
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. pop — soda
  24. scale — size or range

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