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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: scale · season · bowl · chip · lie · hide · land · jam

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. season — of the year
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. scale — size or range
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. scale — in music
  12. land — ground
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. season — in sport
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. lie — to recline
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. chip — for betting
  22. chip — to eat
  23. land — a country
  24. land — to come down

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