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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. rock — a stone
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. race — the arms race
  5. spring — a coil
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. shower — rain
  8. race — humankind
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. race — a contest
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. roll — a cake
  13. press — to push
  14. press — a publisher
  15. shower — to wash
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. roll — a list
  19. bat — the animal
  20. press — newspapers
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — the season
  23. rock — music
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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