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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 120 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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bound — tied together
  3. game — a match
  4. game — wild animals
  5. race — the arms race
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. shower — to wash
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. race — a contest
  11. tear — from crying
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. bound — certain
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. chip — for betting
  17. tear — to rip
  18. chip — to eat
  19. plane — a tool
  20. race — humankind
  21. bound — obliged
  22. shower — rain
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. chip — in a computer

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