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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. pop — soda
  3. pop — to visit
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. can — to be able to
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. cue — for pool
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. bat — the animal
  16. cue — a signal
  17. cue — a hint
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. cold — an illness
  20. pop — music
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. cold — not warm
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. can — a tin

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