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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. rock — music
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. vault — a safe
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. file — a line of people
  9. spell — magic
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. branch — a division
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. file — a document
  14. tube — a container
  15. rock — a stone
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. tube — the underground
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. spell — letters
  22. spell — a short time
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. file — a tool

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