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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.

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: game · last · straw · spell · shower · bowl · roll · wind

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. spell — magic
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. wind — moving air
  7. spell — a short time
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. spell — letters
  12. game — a match
  13. game — wild animals
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. last — to go on
  17. last — finally
  18. roll — a list
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. roll — a cake
  22. shower — to wash
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. last — final

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