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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. race — a contest
  3. can — a tin
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. can — a tin
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. swing — to play on
  9. can — to be able to
  10. branch — a division
  11. swing — music
  12. lie — to recline
  13. swing — in golf
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. race — humankind
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. rush — hurry
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. race — the arms race
  23. scale — in music
  24. scale — size or range

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