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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. spring — a coil
  3. snap — to click
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. march — the month
  8. race — a contest
  9. roll — a cake
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. board — a committee
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. scale — size or range
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. spring — of water
  16. march — the month
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. scale — in music
  19. roll — a list
  20. race — humankind
  21. board — to get on
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. march — music
  24. spring — the season

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