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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. rush — hurry
  3. pass — a permit
  4. plane — a tool
  5. game — a match
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. pit — in a race
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. root — of a word
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. root — of a plant
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. root — the cause
  17. pit — a hole
  18. snap — to click
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. game — wild animals

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