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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. mug — a cup
  3. mug — a face
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. land — a country
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. degree — temperature
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. land — to come down
  11. mug — to rob
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. degree — an amount
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — for light
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. land — ground
  24. degree — from a university

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