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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. bound — tied together
  5. last — final
  6. pop — soda
  7. pop — to visit
  8. clip — for paper
  9. clip — a video
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. rash — a series
  12. mate — to breed
  13. rash — hasty
  14. mate — a partner
  15. last — finally
  16. clip — to cut
  17. scale — size or range
  18. last — to go on
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. mate — a friend
  22. scale — in music
  23. bound — certain
  24. pop — music

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