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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. branch — a division
  3. cap — a hat
  4. race — humankind
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. rush — hurry
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. ball — a great time
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. cap — a lid
  12. degree — temperature
  13. degree — from a university
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. race — the arms race
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. plane — a tool
  21. cap — of ice
  22. pound — a weight
  23. degree — an amount
  24. race — a contest

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