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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. race — a contest
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. race — the arms race
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. land — ground
  8. race — humankind
  9. land — to come down
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — crushed
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bore — to tire
  15. wound — an injury
  16. bore — to drill
  17. ground — a position
  18. rule — a law
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. land — a country
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wound — an injury
  24. rule — government

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