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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
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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: rest · cell · row · chair · ground · bowl · pitcher · spell

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. rest — a break
  5. row — a line
  6. ground — a position
  7. row — to paddle
  8. spell — a short time
  9. cell — in biology
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. chair — a leader
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. rest — what's left
  18. spell — letters
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. ground — the earth
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. spell — magic
  24. ground — crushed

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