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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.

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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: rest · straw · cell · pit · row · ground · bear · bowl

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. ground — a position
  4. pit — in a race
  5. row — a line
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. rest — what's left
  10. row — to paddle
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. ground — crushed
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rest — a break
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. ground — the earth
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. pit — a hole
  22. cell — in biology
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. bowl — a dish

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