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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. spring — a coil
  5. bound — tied together
  6. mug — a cup
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. tear — from crying
  11. spring — the season
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. tear — to rip
  14. bound — certain
  15. bound — obliged
  16. cell — in biology
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. mug — a face
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. tear — from crying
  22. mug — to rob
  23. spring — of water
  24. lash — to lash out

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