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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. scale — in music
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. row — to paddle
  8. race — humankind
  9. press — newspapers
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. mine — for digging
  13. race — a contest
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. press — a publisher
  17. row — a line
  18. wax — to grow
  19. tube — the underground
  20. scale — size or range
  21. deal — to handle
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — a container
  24. press — to push

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