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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 116 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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. swing — in golf
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. swing — to play on
  5. wake — a trail
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. season — of the year
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. swing — music
  10. capital — money
  11. chip — to eat
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. capital — a city
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. prune — to trim
  21. season — in sport
  22. prune — to trim
  23. chip — for betting
  24. prune — the fruit

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