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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 116 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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. race — the arms race
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — humankind
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. last — final
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. pit — in a race
  10. last — finally
  11. land — to come down
  12. bank — of a river
  13. scale — size or range
  14. last — to go on
  15. land — a country
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. land — ground
  18. scale — in music
  19. game — a match
  20. pit — a hole
  21. bank — for money
  22. bank — for money
  23. game — wild animals
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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