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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. row — a line
  4. bat — the animal
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. branch — a division
  7. tube — a container
  8. wind — moving air
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. tube — the underground
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. mine — for digging
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. row — to paddle
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. pass — a permit

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