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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. shower — to wash
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. fall — to drop
  7. swing — in golf
  8. bass — the fish
  9. swing — music
  10. bass — low music
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. fall — to drop
  14. pound — a weight
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. fall — the season
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. shower — rain
  23. swing — to play on
  24. bowl — a football final

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