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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: cell · date · press · game · spell · fan · bowl · firm

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. game — a match
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spell — letters
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. spell — magic
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. cell — in biology
  11. press — to push
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. game — wild animals
  14. date — the fruit
  15. firm — a company
  16. firm — decided
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. cell — a phone
  21. press — a publisher
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. press — newspapers
  24. firm — steady

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