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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. bat — the animal
  4. mark — a grade
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. race — humankind
  11. sharp — clever
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. field — a subject
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. race — a contest
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. rock — a stone
  18. race — the arms race
  19. field — for sport
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. rock — music
  22. mark — a trace
  23. field — farmland
  24. fan — to cool the air

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