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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. court — of law
  4. race — a contest
  5. capital — money
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. capital — a city
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. court — of a king
  14. mine — for digging
  15. hand — help
  16. file — a line of people
  17. court — for sport
  18. file — a document
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. hand — in cards
  21. race — humankind
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. file — a tool

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