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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. race — humankind
  3. game — a match
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. prune — to trim
  7. game — wild animals
  8. saw — the tool
  9. shower — rain
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. press — to push
  15. press — newspapers
  16. prune — to trim
  17. press — a publisher
  18. cap — of ice
  19. race — the arms race
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. cap — a lid
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. cap — a hat

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