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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: pit · wind · current · game · bowl · ground · file · mate

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. pit — a hole
  3. pit — in a race
  4. file — a line of people
  5. ground — a position
  6. current — of water
  7. mate — to breed
  8. wind — moving air
  9. mate — a partner
  10. wind — moving air
  11. file — a tool
  12. current — happening now
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. current — electric
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. file — a document
  18. ground — the earth
  19. mate — a friend
  20. game — wild animals
  21. ground — crushed
  22. game — a match
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. bowl — to roll

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