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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: kick · ball · bowl · wax · coach · content · lie · row

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. kick — in football
  4. wax — to grow
  5. lie — to recline
  6. content — happy
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. ball — a dance
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. row — to paddle
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. ball — a great time
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. row — a line
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. content — the amount
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. content — videos and posts

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