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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. content — happy
  4. club — a group
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. ground — the earth
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. pit — a hole
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. content — the amount
  11. vault — a safe
  12. land — ground
  13. club — for dancing
  14. club — for golf
  15. band — a ring
  16. land — to come down
  17. pit — in a race
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. ground — a position
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. band — a music group
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. land — a country
  24. ground — crushed

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