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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 120 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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. snap — to click
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cap — of ice
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. present — the time now
  9. cap — a hat
  10. bound — obliged
  11. bound — certain
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. tear — to rip
  17. present — a gift
  18. bound — tied together
  19. present — there
  20. board — a committee
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. board — to get on
  23. tear — from crying
  24. cap — a lid

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