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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. rock — music
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. prune — to trim
  5. row — a line
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. key — in music
  9. fall — to drop
  10. ground — a position
  11. prune — to trim
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. stand — to bear
  14. rock — a stone
  15. row — to paddle
  16. fall — the season
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. key — for a lock
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. fall — to drop
  22. ground — crushed
  23. ground — the earth
  24. key — the most important part

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