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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 116 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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bound — obliged
  3. mark — a trace
  4. vault — a safe
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. net — after costs
  7. rash — hasty
  8. squash — the sport
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. rash — a series
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. mark — a grade
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. stock — goods
  19. net — for catching
  20. stock — shares
  21. squash — to crush
  22. net — in sport
  23. bound — tied together
  24. bound — certain

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