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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. craft — a skill
  3. race — the arms race
  4. sharp — clever
  5. pound — a weight
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. present — the time now
  9. rock — a stone
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. cell — a phone
  12. degree — an amount
  13. race — a contest
  14. degree — temperature
  15. present — a gift
  16. race — humankind
  17. rock — music
  18. craft — boats
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. degree — from a university
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. cell — in biology

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