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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. march — the month
  3. land — ground
  4. bound — certain
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. race — a contest
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. row — to paddle
  9. land — a country
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. march — the month
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. wake — a trail
  16. march — music
  17. row — a line
  18. race — the arms race
  19. bound — obliged
  20. date — the fruit
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. bound — tied together
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. land — to come down

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