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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 120 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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. fine — high quality
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. mate — a partner
  5. pop — music
  6. mate — to breed
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. season — of the year
  11. scale — size or range
  12. season — in sport
  13. fine — all right
  14. mate — a friend
  15. pop — soda
  16. scale — in music
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pop — to visit
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. wound — an injury
  24. season — to add flavour

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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