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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 116 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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. degree — from a university
  4. stock — shares
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. hand — help
  7. race — the arms race
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. cue — a hint
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. hand — in cards
  12. cue — a signal
  13. perch — the fish
  14. bore — to tire
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. bore — to drill
  18. degree — an amount
  19. cue — for pool
  20. race — a contest
  21. stock — goods
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. degree — temperature

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