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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. race — humankind
  4. season — of the year
  5. race — a contest
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. lean — thin
  8. bat — the animal
  9. land — ground
  10. land — a country
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. fine — high quality
  14. lean — to bend
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bulb — for light
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. bulb — for light
  19. race — the arms race
  20. fine — all right
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. season — in sport

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