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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. row — a line
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. last — final
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. last — to go on
  9. cell — a phone
  10. root — of a plant
  11. root — of a word
  12. mate — a partner
  13. can — a tin
  14. last — finally
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. mate — a friend
  18. root — the cause
  19. cell — in biology
  20. mate — to breed
  21. can — a tin
  22. can — to be able to
  23. game — a match
  24. game — wild animals

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