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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — wild animals
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. current — electric
  6. current — of water
  7. spell — magic
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. spell — a short time
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. content — the amount
  12. row — a line
  13. spell — letters
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. file — a line of people
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. file — a document
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. file — a tool
  22. content — happy
  23. row — to paddle
  24. current — happening now

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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