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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. race — humankind
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. squash — to crush
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. object — to protest
  10. object — an aim
  11. race — the arms race
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. lean — thin
  14. branch — a division
  15. lean — to bend
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. chest — a box
  20. squash — the sport
  21. object — a thing
  22. race — a contest
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chest — of your body

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