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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. file — a line of people
  4. court — of law
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. court — of a king
  7. pop — to visit
  8. court — for sport
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. pop — soda
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. file — a tool
  16. pop — music
  17. hand — help
  18. file — a document
  19. mark — a grade
  20. deal — to handle
  21. hand — in cards
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. mark — a trace

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