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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 120 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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. stock — goods
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. plane — a tool
  5. swing — in golf
  6. swing — to play on
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. chair — a leader
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. season — in sport
  12. season — of the year
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. swing — music
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. bat — the animal
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. stock — shares

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