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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. kid — child
  3. ball — a dance
  4. rash — hasty
  5. hand — help
  6. fork — in a road
  7. wax — to grow
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. swing — music
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. swing — in golf
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. kid — to tease
  15. swing — to play on
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. ball — a great time
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. hand — in cards
  20. rash — a series
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. bowl — a dish

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