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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. spell — letters
  5. suit — to fit
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. suit — clothes
  9. wake — a trail
  10. field — for sport
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. suit — in cards
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. field — farmland
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. spell — magic
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. field — a subject
  24. spell — a short time

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