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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 120 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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. content — the amount
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. race — humankind
  6. drill — the tool
  7. race — a contest
  8. track — a path
  9. spring — a coil
  10. land — to come down
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. land — a country
  13. last — finally
  14. land — ground
  15. drill — army training
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. drill — a practice
  18. last — final
  19. last — to go on
  20. track — a song
  21. track — to keep track
  22. spring — of water
  23. content — happy
  24. spring — the season

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