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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. march — the month
  3. spell — magic
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. march — music
  6. bound — tied together
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. race — humankind
  10. spell — letters
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. bound — certain
  13. season — of the year
  14. race — a contest
  15. march — the month
  16. branch — a division
  17. bound — obliged
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. season — in sport
  20. spell — a short time
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. wake — a trail

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