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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. prune — to trim
  4. shower — to wash
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. race — the arms race
  8. race — humankind
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — not warm
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. shower — rain
  17. ball — a dance
  18. prune — to trim
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. ball — a great time
  21. cold — an illness
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. race — a contest
  24. bowl — a football final

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