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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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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: rock · game · bay · mine · last · kick · racket · bowl

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. last — final
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. game — a match
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. rock — a stone
  11. kick — in football
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. game — wild animals
  15. last — to go on
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. mine — for digging
  18. last — finally
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. rock — music
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. mine — belonging to me

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