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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 120 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. club — for golf
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. degree — an amount
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. degree — from a university
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. club — for dancing
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. game — wild animals
  13. club — a group
  14. pop — to visit
  15. cell — in biology
  16. pop — music
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. game — a match
  19. cell — a phone
  20. season — of the year
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. degree — temperature
  23. pop — soda
  24. calf — a young animal

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