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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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Word bank
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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. can — a tin
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. can — to be able to
  7. game — wild animals
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. spring — of water
  12. perch — the fish
  13. dip — to sink
  14. pitch — completely
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. spring — the season
  18. can — a tin
  19. game — a match
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. spring — a coil
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. bowl — a football final

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