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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 120 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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. club — for golf
  4. file — a tool
  5. root — of a plant
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bass — the fish
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. root — the cause
  12. file — a line of people
  13. club — for dancing
  14. hand — in cards
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. race — a contest
  17. hand — help
  18. bass — low music
  19. file — a document
  20. root — of a word
  21. club — a group
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. race — the arms race

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