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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bank — for money
  4. mine — for digging
  5. rock — music
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. cell — a phone
  8. bass — the fish
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. rock — a stone
  13. bank — for money
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. face — to point toward
  16. bass — low music
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. snap — to click
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. face — part of the head
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. face — to confront
  24. bank — of a river

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