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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. ground — the earth
  3. mine — for digging
  4. cue — for pool
  5. plane — a tool
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. race — the arms race
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. race — a contest
  12. wind — moving air
  13. perch — the fish
  14. court — of a king
  15. ground — crushed
  16. cue — a signal
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. cue — a hint
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of law
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. ground — a position
  24. race — humankind

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