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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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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: shower · pop · can · bowl · saw · trunk · field · spell

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. saw — the tool
  3. saw — the tool
  4. can — a tin
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. shower — rain
  8. can — a tin
  9. field — farmland
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. shower — to wash
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. field — for sport
  14. pop — music
  15. spell — magic
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. pop — to visit
  18. pop — soda
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. spell — letters
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. can — to be able to
  24. field — a subject

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