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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. file — a document
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. dip — to sink
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. snap — to click
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. bass — the fish
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. rule — a law
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. game — a match
  18. bass — low music
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a tool
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. game — wild animals
  24. rule — government

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