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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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. pop — music
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. plane — a tool
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. tear — from crying
  8. cap — a lid
  9. wind — moving air
  10. pop — to visit
  11. spring — a coil
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cap — a hat
  15. tear — from crying
  16. wind — moving air
  17. spring — of water
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. spring — the season
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. hand — in cards
  22. tear — to rip
  23. hand — help
  24. pop — soda

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