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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 124 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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. spring — the season
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. race — a contest
  7. game — wild animals
  8. pop — music
  9. spring — a coil
  10. wake — a trail
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. pop — to visit
  13. cell — in biology
  14. bark — to shout
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. pop — soda
  19. spring — of water
  20. race — the arms race
  21. game — a match
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. game — a kind of play

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