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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. mate — a friend
  3. wake — a trail
  4. mug — a face
  5. mate — a partner
  6. mate — to breed
  7. fall — to drop
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. saw — the tool
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. court — of a king
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. court — for sport
  15. fall — to drop
  16. branch — a division
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. fall — the season
  21. mug — a cup
  22. court — of law
  23. mug — to rob
  24. saw — the tool

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