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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: bowl · court · rule · mine · fan · bass · lean · jam

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. lean — thin
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. court — for sport
  7. bass — low music
  8. lean — to bend
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. court — of law
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. rule — government
  17. court — of a king
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. bass — the fish
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. mine — for digging
  24. rule — a law

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