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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. drill — army training
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. court — of law
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. pop — to visit
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. net — for catching
  9. net — after costs
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. drill — the tool
  12. pop — soda
  13. wake — a trail
  14. court — of a king
  15. drill — a practice
  16. court — for sport
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. pop — music
  20. net — in sport
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. wake — before a funeral

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