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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 was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. mate — a partner
  3. bass — the fish
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. bat — the animal
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. season — of the year
  9. object — an aim
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. branch — a division
  14. season — in sport
  15. mate — a friend
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. bass — low music
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. object — a thing
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. object — to protest
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. mate — to breed

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