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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 reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. bound — tied together
  3. net — for catching
  4. net — after costs
  5. race — the arms race
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. bound — certain
  8. capital — a city
  9. race — a contest
  10. pop — music
  11. ball — a great time
  12. capital — money
  13. ball — a dance
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. wake — a trail
  16. net — in sport
  17. cell — a phone
  18. bound — obliged
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. cell — in biology
  22. pop — soda
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. pop — to visit

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