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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. pass — a permit
  3. race — humankind
  4. row — to paddle
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. saw — the tool
  9. race — a contest
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. tear — to rip
  12. spell — letters
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. row — a line
  15. race — the arms race
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. spell — magic
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. tear — from crying
  20. spell — a short time
  21. scale — size or range
  22. scale — in music
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. tear — from crying

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