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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  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. race — a contest
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. cold — not warm
  7. craft — boats
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. can — to be able to
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. race — humankind
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. can — a tin
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. race — the arms race
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. can — a tin
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — an illness
  21. vault — a safe
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. craft — a skill
  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