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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. face — part of the head
  3. race — the arms race
  4. shower — rain
  5. race — humankind
  6. face — to confront
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. cell — a phone
  9. game — wild animals
  10. cell — in biology
  11. rash — a series
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. race — a contest
  15. pound — a weight
  16. roll — a cake
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. roll — a list
  20. shower — to wash
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. face — to point toward
  24. rash — hasty

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