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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. race — humankind
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. present — a gift
  6. key — in music
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. prune — to trim
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. key — for a lock
  11. fall — to drop
  12. prune — to trim
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. wound — an injury
  15. race — the arms race
  16. key — the most important part
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. fall — to drop
  19. present — the time now
  20. race — a contest
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. wound — an injury
  23. present — there
  24. mine — for digging

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