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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. stem — to come from
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. chest — of your body
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. spell — magic
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. spell — letters
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. chest — a box
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. wind — moving air
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. wind — moving air
  22. plane — a tool
  23. chest — of your body
  24. spell — a short time

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