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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 120 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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. court — of a king
  5. bound — certain
  6. race — humankind
  7. race — a contest
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. mug — a cup
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. deal — to handle
  14. swing — music
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. court — of law
  17. mine — for digging
  18. race — the arms race
  19. bound — obliged
  20. court — for sport
  21. mug — a face
  22. swing — in golf
  23. bound — tied together
  24. swing — to play on

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