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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. spell — letters
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. pop — soda
  7. season — in sport
  8. game — a match
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. race — humankind
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. pop — music
  14. stock — goods
  15. pop — to visit
  16. game — wild animals
  17. spell — magic
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. race — a contest
  20. spell — a short time
  21. stock — shares
  22. season — of the year
  23. race — the arms race
  24. safe — a strongbox

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