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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. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. saw — the tool
  4. pop — soda
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. root — of a word
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. pit — a hole
  11. saw — the tool
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. pop — music
  16. pit — in a race
  17. content — happy
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. pop — to visit
  20. content — the amount
  21. wind — moving air
  22. root — the cause
  23. wind — moving air
  24. root — of a plant

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