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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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. racket — for tennis
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. land — a country
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. prune — to trim
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. land — ground
  13. land — to come down
  14. rock — music
  15. drill — army training
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. capital — a city
  19. drill — the tool
  20. drill — a practice
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. prune — to trim
  23. season — of the year
  24. season — in sport

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