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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 120 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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. club — for dancing
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. club — a group
  6. file — a document
  7. file — a tool
  8. spell — magic
  9. press — newspapers
  10. spell — a short time
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. press — to push
  14. file — a line of people
  15. wax — to grow
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. dip — to sink
  18. club — for golf
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. press — a publisher
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. spell — letters

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