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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 116 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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. suit — clothes
  4. scale — in music
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. tear — from crying
  7. suit — in cards
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. suit — to fit
  10. current — electric
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. current — of water
  13. scale — size or range
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. tube — the underground
  16. tube — a container
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. tear — to rip
  21. kick — in football
  22. current — happening now
  23. tear — from crying
  24. kick — a thrill

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