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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. degree — an amount
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. roll — a cake
  8. degree — from a university
  9. cell — in biology
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. roll — a list
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. hand — in cards
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. degree — temperature
  23. stand — to bear
  24. hand — help

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