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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. stock — goods
  4. race — a contest
  5. cap — a lid
  6. stock — shares
  7. cap — of ice
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. scale — in music
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. cap — a hat
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. race — humankind
  15. game — wild animals
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. game — a match
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. scale — size or range
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. sharp — clever
  24. sharp — with an edge

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