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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. prune — to trim
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. pass — a permit
  6. field — a subject
  7. race — the arms race
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. chair — a leader
  10. spell — letters
  11. spell — magic
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. rest — what's left
  14. race — a contest
  15. field — farmland
  16. rest — what's left
  17. field — for sport
  18. rest — a break
  19. prune — to trim
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. spell — a short time

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