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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.

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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: bowl · perch · wake · hand · game · fan · pass · object

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. pass — a permit
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. hand — help
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. object — a thing
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. game — a match
  15. hand — in cards
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. wake — a trail
  18. perch — the fish
  19. object — to protest
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. game — wild animals
  22. object — an aim
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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