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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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Word bank
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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. race — a contest
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. lean — thin
  5. race — the arms race
  6. club — for dancing
  7. club — a group
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. lean — to bend
  10. present — there
  11. present — the time now
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. fork — in a road
  14. present — a gift
  15. club — for golf
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. race — humankind
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. chest — of your body
  21. game — wild animals
  22. chest — of your body
  23. chest — a box
  24. game — a match

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