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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  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 dish
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. rock — a stone
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. file — a document
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. perch — the fish
  12. key — for a lock
  13. spell — letters
  14. file — a tool
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. spell — magic
  17. file — a line of people
  18. key — in music
  19. mine — for digging
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. spell — a short time
  22. rock — music
  23. bowl — to roll
  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