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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. season — of the year
  3. cue — a signal
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. pop — music
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. land — to come down
  8. land — a country
  9. pitch — completely
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. cue — a hint
  12. season — in sport
  13. pop — to visit
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. cue — for pool
  18. pop — soda
  19. game — wild animals
  20. land — ground
  21. game — a match
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. stand — to bear
  24. stand — on your feet

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