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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. bulb — for light
  6. mate — to breed
  7. degree — temperature
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. bulb — for light
  11. degree — from a university
  12. drill — a practice
  13. chip — for betting
  14. mate — a partner
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. drill — the tool
  17. wake — a trail
  18. degree — an amount
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. chip — to eat
  21. mate — a friend
  22. spell — a short time
  23. spell — magic
  24. drill — army training

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