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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. game — wild animals
  3. stand — to bear
  4. court — for sport
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. row — to paddle
  7. pass — a permit
  8. row — a line
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. game — a match
  11. court — of law
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. race — a contest
  14. race — humankind
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. ball — a great time
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. ball — a dance
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. court — of a king
  24. trunk — of a car

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