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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. fork — in a road
  3. race — humankind
  4. wound — an injury
  5. scale — in music
  6. mug — to rob
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. cell — a phone
  10. squash — to crush
  11. race — the arms race
  12. file — a document
  13. mug — a cup
  14. file — a tool
  15. squash — the sport
  16. file — a line of people
  17. wound — an injury
  18. mug — a face
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. scale — size or range
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. cell — in biology

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