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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. file — a line of people
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. file — a document
  11. file — a tool
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. bear — the animal
  14. fall — to drop
  15. key — the most important part
  16. fall — to drop
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bear — the animal
  20. key — in music
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. fall — the season
  23. key — for a lock
  24. nail — on a finger

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