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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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. fall — to drop
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. race — a contest
  6. wake — a trail
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. fork — in a road
  13. fall — the season
  14. scale — size or range
  15. craft — boats
  16. race — the arms race
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. scale — in music
  19. race — humankind
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. craft — a skill
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fork — a garden 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