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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. cell — in biology
  5. race — the arms race
  6. hand — help
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. ball — a great time
  9. cue — a signal
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cue — for pool
  13. bear — the animal
  14. hand — in cards
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. shower — to wash
  17. ball — a dance
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. shower — rain
  20. bear — the animal
  21. race — a contest
  22. race — humankind
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. cue — a hint

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