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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 120 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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. ground — crushed
  5. rush — hurry
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. hand — in cards
  8. ground — the earth
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. bass — the fish
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. bass — low music
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. ground — a position
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. hand — help
  22. pitch — completely
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. arm — part of the body

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