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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. rash — hasty
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. club — for golf
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. perch — the fish
  7. club — for dancing
  8. club — a group
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. ground — the earth
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. object — to protest
  15. ground — a position
  16. bound — certain
  17. object — a thing
  18. object — an aim
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. bound — obliged
  21. rash — a series
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. bound — tied together
  24. ground — crushed

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