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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. race — the arms race
  4. cap — a hat
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. saw — the tool
  7. saw — the tool
  8. bear — the animal
  9. court — of law
  10. bear — the animal
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kid — child
  14. court — of a king
  15. race — a contest
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. kid — to tease
  18. cap — a lid
  19. race — humankind
  20. cap — of ice
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. perch — the fish
  24. perch — for a bird

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