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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. spell — magic
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. land — ground
  8. mark — a grade
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. cold — not warm
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. land — to come down
  14. vault — a safe
  15. mark — a trace
  16. rest — a break
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. cold — an illness
  19. spell — a short time
  20. rest — what's left
  21. sharp — clever
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. land — a country
  24. rest — what's left

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