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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. rash — a series
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. cue — a hint
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. ground — crushed
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. shower — to wash
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. shower — rain
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. ground — a position
  15. chest — of your body
  16. ground — the earth
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. chest — a box
  19. cue — a signal
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. chest — of your body
  23. cue — for pool
  24. rash — hasty

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