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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 116 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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. pop — soda
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. pop — to visit
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. prune — to trim
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. pop — music
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. mate — a friend
  14. prune — to trim
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. mate — to breed
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fall — the season
  23. mate — a partner
  24. pitch — completely

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