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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. rule — government
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. race — a contest
  5. wax — to grow
  6. race — humankind
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. spring — a coil
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. ground — the earth
  11. drill — the tool
  12. drill — a practice
  13. spring — the season
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. craft — a skill
  16. spring — of water
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. drill — army training
  20. rule — a law
  21. race — the arms race
  22. ground — crushed
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. craft — boats

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