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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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468
Word bank
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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. game — wild animals
  4. bass — low music
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. snap — to click
  7. bass — the fish
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. charge — electricity
  11. spring — of water
  12. race — the arms race
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. spring — the season
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. charge — a price
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. race — a contest
  19. charge — in control
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. race — humankind
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. spring — a coil

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