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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. race — a contest
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cap — of ice
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. cap — a hat
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. tear — from crying
  12. race — the arms race
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. tear — to rip
  15. race — humankind
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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