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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 120 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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. race — the arms race
  4. field — farmland
  5. cue — for pool
  6. row — to paddle
  7. cue — a hint
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. cell — in biology
  10. mug — a face
  11. cue — a signal
  12. cell — a phone
  13. mug — a cup
  14. field — a subject
  15. mug — to rob
  16. row — a line
  17. race — a contest
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. race — humankind
  20. pop — to visit
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. pop — soda
  23. field — for sport
  24. pop — music

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