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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. last — final
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. rush — hurry
  11. board — to get on
  12. last — to go on
  13. wind — moving air
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. board — a committee
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. last — finally
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. pitcher — a jug

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