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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. shower — to wash
  3. court — of a king
  4. band — a ring
  5. race — the arms race
  6. saw — the tool
  7. shower — rain
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. court — for sport
  10. perch — the fish
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. spell — a short time
  13. spell — magic
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. court — of law
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. spell — letters
  18. band — a music group
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. saw — the tool
  22. race — humankind
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. perch — for a bird

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