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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wave · game · cell · bowl · lean · mouse · track · saw

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. saw — the tool
  5. game — wild animals
  6. cell — a phone
  7. game — a match
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. track — a path
  11. track — a song
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. saw — the tool
  14. track — to keep track
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. lean — thin
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. lean — to bend
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. cell — in biology
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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