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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. cap — of ice
  3. race — humankind
  4. cap — a hat
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. squash — to crush
  7. race — a contest
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. press — to push
  13. land — ground
  14. craft — a skill
  15. perch — the fish
  16. race — the arms race
  17. craft — boats
  18. squash — the sport
  19. press — a publisher
  20. land — a country
  21. cap — a lid
  22. press — newspapers
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. land — to come down

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