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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. prune — to trim
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. prune — to trim
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. march — music
  9. bank — for money
  10. stem — to come from
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. march — the month
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. kick — in football
  18. bank — of a river
  19. bank — for money
  20. hand — help
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. march — the month
  23. hand — in cards
  24. hide — animal skin

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