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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. race — the arms race
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. saw — the tool
  7. track — a path
  8. content — the amount
  9. season — of the year
  10. race — a contest
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. pass — a permit
  16. race — humankind
  17. track — a song
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. season — in sport
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. content — happy
  24. track — to keep track

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