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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. fine — high quality
  3. pass — a permit
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. fine — all right
  6. race — a contest
  7. game — wild animals
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. race — humankind
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. game — a match
  14. ball — a great time
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. snap — to click
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. race — the arms race

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