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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 116 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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. perch — the fish
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. firm — a company
  9. spring — the season
  10. spring — of water
  11. rash — hasty
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. firm — decided
  17. rash — a series
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. firm — steady
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. spring — a coil
  24. straw — a straw man

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