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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. spell — a short time
  4. spell — letters
  5. bulb — for light
  6. land — a country
  7. land — ground
  8. race — a contest
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. track — a song
  11. plane — a tool
  12. spell — magic
  13. track — a path
  14. kid — to tease
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. kid — child
  17. track — to keep track
  18. bulb — for light
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — an injury
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. land — to come down
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. race — humankind

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