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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. branch — a division
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. mine — for digging
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bass — low music
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bark — to shout
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. bass — the fish
  24. mouse — for a computer

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