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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. race — the arms race
  3. race — a contest
  4. ball — a dance
  5. craft — a skill
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. file — a line of people
  8. chest — a box
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. degree — from a university
  11. vault — a safe
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — of your body
  15. race — humankind
  16. file — a document
  17. tube — a container
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. craft — boats
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. file — a tool
  22. degree — temperature
  23. tube — the underground
  24. degree — an amount

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