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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 120 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 lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. race — humankind
  3. prune — to trim
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. chest — of your body
  6. field — farmland
  7. race — the arms race
  8. chip — for betting
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mine — for digging
  12. chest — of your body
  13. field — for sport
  14. prune — to trim
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. race — a contest
  19. chip — to eat
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. field — a subject
  24. temple — a place of worship

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