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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: hide · ground · spring · game · bowl · mouse · club · snap

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. club — for golf
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. club — for dancing
  9. club — a group
  10. game — wild animals
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. spring — of water
  13. ground — crushed
  14. ground — the earth
  15. spring — the season
  16. ground — a position
  17. spring — a coil
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. game — a match
  21. snap — to click
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. hide — to keep secret

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