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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — in sport
  3. court — for sport
  4. bank — of a river
  5. tube — the underground
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. saw — the tool
  8. court — of a king
  9. spell — letters
  10. court — of law
  11. scale — in music
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. tube — a container
  14. scale — size or range
  15. bank — for money
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. bank — for money
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. spell — magic
  20. saw — the tool
  21. spell — a short time
  22. season — of the year
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lie — to recline

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