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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. last — to go on
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. club — a group
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. club — for dancing
  8. race — a contest
  9. prune — to trim
  10. race — humankind
  11. prune — to trim
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. race — the arms race
  14. last — final
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. tube — the underground
  17. tube — a container
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. shower — rain
  21. shower — to wash
  22. club — for golf
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. last — finally

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