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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. season — of the year
  4. track — a song
  5. track — a path
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. track — to keep track
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. sharp — clever
  14. race — the arms race
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. drill — a practice
  17. season — in sport
  18. race — humankind
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. race — a contest
  22. drill — the tool
  23. drill — army training
  24. deal — to handle

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