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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. row — a line
  5. stand — to bear
  6. row — to paddle
  7. rock — a stone
  8. race — the arms race
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. rush — hurry
  11. mark — a grade
  12. rock — music
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. race — a contest
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. degree — from a university
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. race — humankind
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. mark — a trace
  23. degree — temperature
  24. degree — an amount

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