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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. craft — boats
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. kid — to tease
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. rock — a stone
  8. race — a contest
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. kid — child
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. race — the arms race
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. craft — a skill
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. wound — an injury
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. rock — music
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. wound — an injury
  24. bowl — a football final

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