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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 116 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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. capital — money
  5. game — wild animals
  6. race — the arms race
  7. race — a contest
  8. scale — in music
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. capital — a city
  12. ball — a dance
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. dip — to sink
  16. net — in sport
  17. game — a match
  18. race — humankind
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. net — after costs
  21. scale — size or range
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. ball — a great time

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