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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 116 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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. pop — to visit
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. ground — a position
  5. ground — the earth
  6. race — humankind
  7. can — to be able to
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. file — a tool
  10. file — a line of people
  11. can — a tin
  12. hand — in cards
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. can — a tin
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. file — a document
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. season — in sport
  19. pop — soda
  20. ground — crushed
  21. pop — music
  22. race — a contest
  23. season — of the year
  24. race — the arms race

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