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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. race — humankind
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. root — of a word
  7. bass — the fish
  8. race — the arms race
  9. cold — not warm
  10. stock — shares
  11. plane — a tool
  12. root — of a plant
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. stock — goods
  15. bass — low music
  16. root — the cause
  17. cold — an illness
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. season — of the year
  22. race — a contest
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. bass — the instrument

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