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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 120 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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. race — a contest
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. snap — to click
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — farmland
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. mark — a grade
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. mark — a trace
  14. race — humankind
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. field — a subject
  18. race — the arms race

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