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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. last — final
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. season — of the year
  5. wake — a trail
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. last — finally
  9. current — of water
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. current — happening now
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. present — a gift
  15. current — electric
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. present — the time now
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. present — there
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. season — in sport
  24. last — to go on

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