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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: bulb · bowl · hand · cell · squash · craft · chair · stock

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. hand — help
  4. bulb — for light
  5. cell — in biology
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. stock — shares
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. craft — boats
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. bulb — for light
  13. stock — goods
  14. craft — a skill
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. squash — to crush
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. cell — a phone
  19. hand — in cards
  20. squash — the sport
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. chair — a leader
  24. squash — the vegetable

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