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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. race — a contest
  3. race — the arms race
  4. bulb — for light
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. game — a match
  7. staff — employees
  8. cell — a phone
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. staff — a stick
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. game — wild animals
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. cell — in biology
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. row — a line
  19. staff — employees
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. bulb — for light
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. row — to paddle

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