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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. lie — to recline
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. kid — child
  5. spring — a coil
  6. net — after costs
  7. race — a contest
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. degree — an amount
  10. net — for catching
  11. spring — of water
  12. degree — temperature
  13. kid — to tease
  14. perch — the fish
  15. net — in sport
  16. cue — a signal
  17. cue — for pool
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. cue — a hint
  21. spring — the season
  22. race — the arms race
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. degree — from a university

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