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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: ball · snap · cell · game · bowl · sharp · net · capital

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. net — in sport
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. net — after costs
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. net — for catching
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. sharp — clever
  13. capital — a city
  14. snap — to click
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. capital — money
  17. cell — a phone
  18. game — wild animals
  19. ball — a dance
  20. cell — in biology
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. ball — a great time
  24. game — a match

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