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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. race — humankind
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. mug — a cup
  6. race — a contest
  7. march — music
  8. land — to come down
  9. land — ground
  10. spring — of water
  11. spring — the season
  12. land — a country
  13. snap — to click
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. march — the month
  17. race — the arms race
  18. tube — a container
  19. march — the month
  20. mug — a face
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. spring — a coil
  23. mug — to rob
  24. tube — the underground

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