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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. deal — to handle
  3. perch — the fish
  4. cold — not warm
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. roll — a list
  11. roll — a cake
  12. cold — an illness
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. ball — a great time
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. race — a contest
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. race — humankind
  22. ball — a dance
  23. rush — hurry
  24. mine — for digging

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