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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. season — of the year
  5. race — the arms race
  6. ball — a dance
  7. cap — a hat
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. degree — temperature
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. cap — of ice
  13. ball — a great time
  14. season — in sport
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. cap — a lid
  17. race — humankind
  18. degree — an amount

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