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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. mate — a partner
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. mate — a friend
  8. kick — in football
  9. stem — to come from
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. wax — to grow
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. mate — to breed

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