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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. present — a gift
  4. race — a contest
  5. race — humankind
  6. fall — to drop
  7. plane — a tool
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. present — there
  10. fall — to drop
  11. present — the time now
  12. race — the arms race
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. spring — a coil
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. mark — a grade
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. fall — the season
  22. spring — the season
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. spring — of water

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