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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. race — a contest
  3. spell — letters
  4. pop — music
  5. race — humankind
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. spell — magic
  8. pop — soda
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. ground — the earth
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. ground — crushed
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. craft — a skill
  16. game — wild animals
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. spell — a short time
  19. ground — a position
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. race — the arms race
  23. game — a match
  24. pop — to visit

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