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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. game — a match
  5. game — wild animals
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. saw — the tool
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. march — the month
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cold — an illness
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. march — the month
  15. ball — a dance
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. march — music
  19. saw — the tool
  20. craft — boats
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. craft — a skill
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. cold — not warm

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