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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 116 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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  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. trunk — of a tree
  3. object — to protest
  4. cold — not warm
  5. last — to go on
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. last — finally
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. bear — the animal
  12. cold — an illness
  13. last — final
  14. object — an aim
  15. club — for golf
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. bear — the animal
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. object — a thing
  21. club — for dancing
  22. club — a group
  23. chair — a leader
  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