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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. file — a tool
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. content — the amount
  7. squash — the sport
  8. file — a line of people
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. spell — magic
  12. spell — a short time
  13. rock — music
  14. squash — to crush
  15. game — wild animals
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. content — happy
  19. spell — letters
  20. file — a document
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. game — a match
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. rock — a stone

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