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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. mate — to breed
  3. mate — a friend
  4. race — the arms race
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. game — wild animals
  9. race — humankind
  10. mark — a trace
  11. mate — a partner
  12. bark — to shout
  13. season — of the year
  14. wax — to grow
  15. season — in sport
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. race — a contest
  18. mark — a grade
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. game — a match
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. mark — to pay attention

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