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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. ball — a great time
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — humankind
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. prune — to trim
  7. ball — a dance
  8. rule — a law
  9. bass — the fish
  10. shower — to wash
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. shower — rain
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. current — happening now
  16. current — electric
  17. current — of water
  18. bass — low music
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. rule — government
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. race — the arms race
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. perch — the fish

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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