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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. race — the arms race
  4. race — a contest
  5. cold — an illness
  6. deal — to handle
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. game — a match
  11. race — humankind
  12. chip — to eat
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. plane — a tool
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. cold — not warm
  21. game — wild animals
  22. pound — a weight
  23. chip — for betting
  24. plane — an aircraft

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