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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. race — the arms race
  3. ball — a dance
  4. net — after costs
  5. race — humankind
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. land — ground
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. ball — a great time
  13. net — in sport
  14. snap — to click
  15. prune — to trim
  16. cell — in biology
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. land — to come down
  19. prune — to trim
  20. race — a contest
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. land — a country
  24. net — for catching

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