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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. object — an aim
  5. net — in sport
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. degree — an amount
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. degree — from a university
  11. degree — temperature
  12. mug — a cup
  13. object — a thing
  14. cell — a phone
  15. mug — a face
  16. mug — to rob
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. cell — in biology
  19. net — for catching
  20. prune — to trim
  21. object — to protest
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. net — after costs

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