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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 120 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: season · bowl · straw · mine · rush · content · track · spell

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. track — a path
  4. content — the amount
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. season — in sport
  8. rush — hurry
  9. spell — magic
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mine — for digging
  12. content — happy
  13. track — to keep track
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. track — a song
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. spell — a short time
  24. season — of the year

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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