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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. club — a group
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. spell — a short time
  5. club — for dancing
  6. spell — letters
  7. net — for catching
  8. scale — in music
  9. scale — size or range
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. tube — the underground
  12. tube — a container
  13. shower — rain
  14. net — after costs
  15. shower — to wash
  16. net — in sport
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. club — for golf
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. saw — the tool
  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