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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's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. root — of a plant
  3. net — after costs
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. chest — of your body
  6. net — in sport
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. bank — for money
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. mark — a trace
  11. net — for catching
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. bank — of a river
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. chest — of your body
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. mark — a grade
  20. root — of a word
  21. root — the cause
  22. bank — for money
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. chest — a box

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