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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. mine — for digging
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. race — a contest
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. date — the fruit
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. race — the arms race
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. sharp — clever
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. mate — a partner
  13. mate — a friend
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. mate — to breed
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. race — humankind
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. bowl — to roll

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