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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 124 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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. shower — rain
  3. file — a tool
  4. kid — child
  5. spell — magic
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — to be able to
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. toast — bread
  10. shower — to wash
  11. file — a line of people
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. ground — crushed
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. spell — a short time
  18. file — a document
  19. ground — a position
  20. can — a tin
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. ground — the earth
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. kid — to tease

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