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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. land — to come down
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. spell — a short time
  5. swing — to play on
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. swing — music
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. land — ground
  11. cue — a hint
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. spell — magic
  14. cue — for pool
  15. cue — a signal
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. band — a ring
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. land — a country
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. band — a music group
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. swing — in golf

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