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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. mug — to rob
  3. last — finally
  4. mark — a grade
  5. mark — a trace
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. mine — for digging
  11. last — to go on
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. mug — a face
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. mug — a cup
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. last — final
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. season — of the year
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. season — in sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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