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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. rush — hurry
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. degree — temperature
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. rock — music
  12. degree — from a university
  13. cell — a phone
  14. deal — to handle
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. rock — a stone
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. degree — an amount

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