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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. cue — for pool
  4. march — the month
  5. cue — a signal
  6. race — humankind
  7. race — a contest
  8. stem — to come from
  9. cue — a hint
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. hand — in cards
  12. land — a country
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. kid — to tease
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. land — to come down
  19. race — the arms race
  20. march — music
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. kid — child
  23. land — ground
  24. hand — help

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