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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.

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: track · field · plane · spell · bowl · cold · straw · wave

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. spell — a short time
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. track — to keep track
  10. cold — not warm
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. field — a subject
  13. field — farmland
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. plane — a tool
  16. cold — an illness
  17. track — a path
  18. track — a song
  19. field — for sport
  20. spell — magic
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. spell — letters
  24. straw — a straw man

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