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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. current — of water
  3. land — a country
  4. prune — to trim
  5. court — of law
  6. current — happening now
  7. prune — to trim
  8. shower — to wash
  9. race — a contest
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. current — electric
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. court — for sport
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. shower — rain
  16. land — ground
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. land — to come down
  19. race — the arms race
  20. season — in sport
  21. race — humankind
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. court — of a king
  24. season — of the year

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