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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. game — a match
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. spell — a short time
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. wound — an injury
  9. spell — magic
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. stand — to bear
  12. staff — employees
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. spell — letters
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. mark — a grade
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. staff — employees
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. staff — a stick
  21. game — wild animals
  22. mark — a trace
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. bowl — a football final

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