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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. pop — to visit
  12. sharp — clever
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — shares
  18. pop — soda
  19. race — humankind
  20. dip — to sink
  21. pop — music
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. race — the arms race
  24. kick — in football

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