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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.

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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: fan · staff · deal · bowl · pop · race · bat · root

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. race — humankind
  4. bat — the animal
  5. race — a contest
  6. race — the arms race
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. root — of a word
  13. staff — a stick
  14. pop — to visit
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. root — of a plant
  17. pop — soda
  18. staff — employees
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. staff — employees
  21. root — the cause
  22. deal — to handle
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. pop — music

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