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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. fall — to drop
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. fall — the season
  5. bank — for money
  6. roll — a cake
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. bank — of a river
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. fall — to drop
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. mark — a grade
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. mark — a trace
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a music group
  19. bank — for money
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. roll — a list
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. pass — a permit

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