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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
468
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 · current · hand · straw · scale · race · squash · court

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. race — a contest
  3. hand — in cards
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. court — of law
  7. scale — size or range
  8. race — the arms race
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. current — of water
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. hand — help
  13. race — humankind
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. squash — the sport
  17. scale — in music
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. court — of a king
  20. current — electric
  21. court — for sport
  22. squash — to crush
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. scale — for weighing

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