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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.

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: hide · capital · lean · bowl · plane · game · degree · season

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  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. bowl — to roll
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. degree — an amount
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. season — of the year
  7. season — in sport
  8. degree — from a university
  9. capital — money
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a match
  12. capital — a city
  13. degree — temperature
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. plane — a tool
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. lean — to bend
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. lean — thin
  23. lean — to rest against
  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