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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. race — humankind
  3. degree — from a university
  4. capital — a city
  5. race — the arms race
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. saw — the tool
  11. cell — in biology
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. capital — money
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. degree — temperature
  16. cell — a phone
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. degree — an amount
  20. rock — music
  21. race — a contest
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. saw — the tool
  24. rock — a stone

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