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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 116 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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. pop — to visit
  3. race — humankind
  4. drill — a practice
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. mine — for digging
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. drill — the tool
  14. race — a contest
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. pop — soda
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. drill — army training
  20. kid — to tease
  21. kid — child
  22. pound — a weight
  23. pop — music
  24. trunk — of a tree

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