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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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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. last — final
  4. shower — to wash
  5. fine — high quality
  6. rash — hasty
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. race — humankind
  9. prune — to trim
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. last — to go on
  12. shower — rain
  13. prune — to trim
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. race — a contest
  17. fine — all right
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. race — the arms race
  23. rash — a series
  24. last — finally

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