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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. suit — clothes
  3. pit — in a race
  4. suit — to fit
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. wound — an injury
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. suit — in cards
  11. toast — bread
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. field — for sport
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. wound — an injury
  21. field — a subject
  22. pit — a hole
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. field — farmland

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