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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. band — a ring
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. stem — to come from
  6. prune — to trim
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. band — a music group
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. game — a match
  11. mate — to breed
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. game — wild animals
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. season — in sport
  18. prune — to trim
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. mate — a friend
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. mate — a partner
  23. season — of the year
  24. game — a kind of play

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