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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. net — in sport
  3. net — for catching
  4. last — to go on
  5. cue — a hint
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. swing — in golf
  8. net — after costs
  9. swing — to play on
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. last — finally
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. spring — the season
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. spring — of water
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. cue — for pool
  20. swing — music
  21. cue — a signal
  22. spring — a coil
  23. last — final
  24. straw — a straw man

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