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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.

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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: club · dip · toast · row · bowl · bat · cell · wind

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. dip — to sink
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. club — for golf
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. row — to paddle
  7. club — for dancing
  8. row — a line
  9. cell — in biology
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. cell — a phone
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. toast — bread
  22. club — a group
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. bat — for baseball

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