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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. hand — help
  3. present — there
  4. sharp — clever
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. ball — a great time
  7. club — a group
  8. stock — shares
  9. stock — goods
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. ball — a dance
  12. present — the time now
  13. date — the fruit
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. club — for dancing
  19. hand — in cards
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. club — for golf
  23. present — a gift
  24. hand — part of the body

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