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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. bulb — for light
  4. last — to go on
  5. wind — moving air
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. field — a subject
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. last — finally
  12. fine — high quality
  13. field — for sport
  14. branch — a division
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. fine — all right
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. last — final
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. bulb — for light
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. field — farmland

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