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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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. board — to get on
  3. game — a match
  4. race — a contest
  5. game — wild animals
  6. cold — an illness
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. toast — bread
  11. board — a committee
  12. land — to come down
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. race — the arms race
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. plane — a tool
  20. land — ground
  21. land — a country
  22. race — humankind
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. racket — for tennis

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