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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. degree — an amount
  3. rock — music
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. vault — a safe
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. degree — temperature
  8. wound — an injury
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. pit — a hole
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. wound — an injury
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. degree — from a university
  19. pit — in a race
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. bass — low music
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. bass — the fish
  24. rock — a stone

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