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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. hand — in cards
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. saw — the tool
  8. ball — a great time
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. content — the amount
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. wake — a trail
  15. content — happy
  16. spell — letters
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. spell — magic
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. spell — a short time
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. ball — a dance

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