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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: bowl · row · rest · cap · bat · chair · foot · temple

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. cap — a lid
  5. rest — a break
  6. bat — the animal
  7. rest — what's left
  8. foot — a measure
  9. rest — what's left
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. chair — a leader
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — a line
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. row — to paddle
  22. cap — a hat
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. foot — part of the body

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