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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. race — a contest
  4. degree — temperature
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. race — the arms race
  7. spring — the season
  8. pitch — completely
  9. deal — to handle
  10. club — for golf
  11. rock — music
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. spring — of water
  14. rock — a stone
  15. spring — a coil
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. degree — an amount
  18. bark — to shout
  19. degree — from a university
  20. club — a group
  21. club — for dancing
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. rock — to move gently

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