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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. game — wild animals
  4. rash — hasty
  5. rash — a series
  6. game — a match
  7. last — to go on
  8. roll — a list
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. last — final
  11. last — finally
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. race — humankind
  16. foot — a measure
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. roll — a cake
  23. race — the arms race
  24. perch — the fish

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