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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. key — the most important part
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. tube — a container
  7. band — a ring
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. band — a music group
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. scale — size or range
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. chair — a leader
  16. lie — to recline
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. key — in music
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. tube — the underground
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. scale — in music
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. key — for a lock

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