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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. pop — soda
  3. cue — a hint
  4. wax — to grow
  5. cue — a signal
  6. game — wild animals
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. race — humankind
  9. row — a line
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. pop — to visit
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. race — a contest
  16. pop — music
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. game — a match
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. row — to paddle
  22. saw — the tool
  23. cue — for pool
  24. saw — the tool

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