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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. field — farmland
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. lie — to recline
  7. suit — clothes
  8. suit — to fit
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chest — a box
  13. chip — for betting
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. chest — of your body
  17. field — for sport
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. field — a subject
  20. wind — moving air
  21. suit — in cards
  22. chip — to eat
  23. chest — of your body
  24. bowl — to roll

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