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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. net — in sport
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. mark — a grade
  5. staff — a stick
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. craft — a skill
  9. stem — to come from
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. cold — not warm
  13. net — after costs
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. season — of the year
  17. cold — an illness
  18. staff — employees
  19. mark — a trace
  20. staff — employees
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. net — for catching
  23. craft — boats
  24. craft — a handicraft

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