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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. object — a thing
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. wake — a trail
  5. wind — moving air
  6. pit — in a race
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. field — a subject
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. rash — a series
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. roll — a list
  14. roll — a cake
  15. pit — a hole
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wind — moving air
  20. field — farmland
  21. field — for sport
  22. rash — hasty
  23. object — to protest
  24. object — an aim

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