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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. drill — army training
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. swing — music
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. ball — a dance
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. swing — to play on
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. last — final
  12. ball — a great time
  13. pound — a weight
  14. last — finally
  15. drill — the tool
  16. swing — in golf
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. file — a document
  19. drill — a practice
  20. file — a line of people
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. last — to go on
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. file — a tool

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