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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. rock — a stone
  3. hand — help
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. ball — a dance
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. ball — a great time
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. tear — from crying
  14. court — of a king
  15. tear — to rip
  16. wound — an injury
  17. tear — from crying
  18. rock — music
  19. hand — in cards
  20. court — for sport
  21. wound — an injury
  22. court — of law
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. wave — of the sea

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