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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. court — of law
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. ground — crushed
  12. court — for sport
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. bat — the animal
  16. race — the arms race
  17. ground — a position
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. ground — the earth
  20. race — a contest
  21. court — of a king
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. kick — in football
  24. bat — in an idiom

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