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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. staff — a stick
  3. net — after costs
  4. bat — the animal
  5. staff — employees
  6. roll — a cake
  7. roll — a list
  8. net — for catching
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. staff — employees
  11. stem — to come from
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. net — in sport
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. deal — to handle

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