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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. land — a country
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. pop — soda
  6. pop — music
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. land — ground
  9. pop — to visit
  10. stem — to come from
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. race — humankind
  13. race — the arms race
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. race — a contest
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. prune — to trim
  19. ball — a great time
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. land — to come down
  23. prune — to trim
  24. arm — part of the body

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