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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. march — music
  4. spring — the season
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. race — humankind
  8. fork — in a road
  9. march — the month
  10. race — a contest
  11. march — the month
  12. race — the arms race
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. spring — a coil
  18. suit — to fit
  19. spring — of water
  20. suit — in cards
  21. kid — child
  22. suit — clothes
  23. kid — to tease
  24. fork — to eat with

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