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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. dip — to sink
  3. club — for golf
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. race — the arms race
  6. club — for dancing
  7. rule — a law
  8. shower — rain
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. shower — to wash
  11. race — humankind
  12. bat — the animal
  13. saw — the tool
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — the animal
  18. race — a contest
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. rule — government
  24. club — a group

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