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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. cell — in biology
  5. fall — to drop
  6. cell — a phone
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. lie — to recline
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. fall — the season
  16. bass — the fish
  17. fall — to drop
  18. wind — moving air
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. bass — low music
  22. mine — for digging
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. arm — part of the body

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