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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: bowl · ball · season · tube · kick · prune · sharp · pop

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. kick — in football
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. prune — to trim
  7. season — in sport
  8. ball — a great time
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. prune — to trim
  11. ball — a dance
  12. sharp — clever
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. pop — soda
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. season — of the year
  18. pop — to visit
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. pop — music
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. tube — a container
  24. tube — in a tire

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