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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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468
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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. can — a tin
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. race — humankind
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. chip — to eat
  11. pound — a weight
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. shower — to wash
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. race — the arms race
  20. can — a tin
  21. chip — for betting
  22. shower — rain
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. can — to be able to

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