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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. foot — a measure
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. race — humankind
  8. last — final
  9. branch — a division
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. race — a contest
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. stand — to bear
  15. last — to go on
  16. court — of a king
  17. court — for sport
  18. pit — in a race
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. last — finally
  21. court — of law
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. race — the arms race
  24. pit — a hole

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