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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  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. present — there
  2. race — humankind
  3. spell — magic
  4. race — a contest
  5. march — the month
  6. chest — a box
  7. spell — letters
  8. club — for dancing
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. present — a gift
  12. race — the arms race
  13. club — a group
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chest — of your body
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. prune — to trim
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. lie — to recline
  20. march — the month
  21. present — the time now
  22. march — music
  23. club — for golf
  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