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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. shower — to wash
  3. mug — to rob
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. shower — rain
  6. ball — a dance
  7. mug — a cup
  8. plane — a tool
  9. bear — the animal
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — humankind
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. ball — a great time
  15. track — a path
  16. mug — a face
  17. bear — the animal
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. track — to keep track
  21. race — the arms race
  22. track — a song
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. plane — an aircraft

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