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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. club — a group
  4. plane — a tool
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. club — for dancing
  8. row — to paddle
  9. roll — a list
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. row — a line
  13. club — for golf
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. cold — not warm
  17. roll — a cake
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. cold — an illness
  20. stand — to bear
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. ruler — for measuring

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