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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. spring — a coil
  3. race — a contest
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. mate — to breed
  6. bound — obliged
  7. prune — to trim
  8. spring — of water
  9. drill — army training
  10. prune — to trim
  11. race — the arms race
  12. bound — certain
  13. drill — the tool
  14. mate — a friend
  15. spring — the season
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. pitch — completely
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. mate — a partner
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. bound — tied together
  23. race — humankind
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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