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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 120 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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. suit — clothes
  3. field — farmland
  4. face — part of the head
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. row — to paddle
  7. land — a country
  8. face — to point toward
  9. land — to come down
  10. field — a subject
  11. band — a ring
  12. land — ground
  13. spell — letters
  14. suit — to fit
  15. face — to confront
  16. row — a line
  17. spell — magic
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. band — a music group
  20. spell — a short time
  21. field — for sport
  22. suit — in cards
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. band — a rubber band

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