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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — the tool
  3. hand — in cards
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. game — a match
  6. lie — to recline
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. rash — hasty
  9. game — wild animals
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. race — humankind
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. hand — help
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. race — the arms race
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. plane — a tool
  22. rash — a series
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. race — a contest

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