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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. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. pop — music
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. drill — army training
  8. stock — goods
  9. drill — a practice
  10. drill — the tool
  11. pop — to visit
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. roll — a cake
  16. roll — a list
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. season — in sport
  19. bat — the animal
  20. stock — shares
  21. season — of the year
  22. wind — moving air
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. pop — soda

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