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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. race — a contest
  3. snap — to click
  4. swing — music
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. kick — in football
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. spring — a coil
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. spring — the season
  11. plane — a tool
  12. court — of a king
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. last — final
  16. race — the arms race
  17. spring — of water
  18. swing — in golf
  19. court — for sport
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. court — of law
  22. swing — to play on
  23. last — finally
  24. race — humankind

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