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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. bound — obliged
  5. spell — a short time
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. spell — magic
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. degree — an amount
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. degree — temperature
  14. bound — tied together
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. bound — certain
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. spell — letters
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. degree — from a university
  23. date — the fruit
  24. fan — a supporter

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