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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 124 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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. wound — an injury
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. wound — an injury
  5. perch — the fish
  6. sharp — clever
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. wake — a trail
  10. mug — a cup
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. mug — a face
  13. stock — goods
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. mug — to rob
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. spring — a coil
  21. spring — of water
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. stock — shares
  24. spring — the season

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