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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. roll — a list
  3. key — the most important part
  4. key — for a lock
  5. ground — a position
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. current — electric
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. roll — a cake
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. current — of water
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. ground — the earth
  15. chest — of your body
  16. key — in music
  17. current — happening now
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. ground — crushed
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. chest — a box
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. patient — a sick person

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