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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. saw — the tool
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. spell — letters
  5. rule — government
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. rule — a law
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. saw — the tool
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. fine — high quality
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. fine — all right
  14. wound — an injury
  15. scale — in music
  16. scale — size or range
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. stem — to come from
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. wound — an injury
  21. spell — a short time
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. spell — magic

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