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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. scale — in music
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. game — wild animals
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. rash — a series
  11. rash — hasty
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. shower — to wash
  14. game — a match
  15. chair — a leader
  16. race — a contest
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. scale — size or range
  19. shower — rain
  20. race — the arms race
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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