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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 120 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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. mate — a partner
  4. race — a contest
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. bound — tied together
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. bound — obliged
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. race — the arms race
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. root — of a word
  14. root — the cause
  15. sharp — clever
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. mate — a friend
  18. root — of a plant
  19. race — humankind
  20. foot — a measure
  21. mate — to breed
  22. bound — certain
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. bowl — a football final

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