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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. bound — certain
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. perch — the fish
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. shower — to wash
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. bound — obliged
  11. root — the cause
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. row — to paddle
  17. root — of a word
  18. plane — a tool
  19. root — of a plant
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. row — a line
  22. bound — tied together
  23. shower — rain
  24. leaves — to go away

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