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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.

Make a worksheet

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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: roll · tube · net · bowl · chest · pop

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. roll — a cake
  3. net — after costs
  4. tube — the underground
  5. chest — of your body
  6. pop — soda
  7. chest — of your body
  8. net — in sport
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. net — for catching
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. roll — a list
  15. pop — music
  16. tube — a container
  17. chest — a box
  18. roll — on a roll

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