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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. wake — a trail
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. prune — to trim
  8. staff — employees
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. prune — to trim
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. race — humankind
  15. game — a match
  16. bass — the fish
  17. staff — employees
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. fork — in a road
  20. bass — low music
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. race — the arms race
  23. game — wild animals
  24. race — a contest

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