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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. squash — the sport
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. kid — to tease
  6. mate — a partner
  7. root — of a plant
  8. season — in sport
  9. season — of the year
  10. squash — to crush
  11. race — humankind
  12. mate — to breed
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. bank — of a river
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. bank — for money
  18. race — a contest
  19. root — the cause
  20. mate — a friend
  21. bank — for money
  22. race — the arms race
  23. root — of a word
  24. kid — child

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