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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. fine — high quality
  3. charge — electricity
  4. fine — all right
  5. root — the cause
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. game — a match
  9. root — of a plant
  10. charge — a price
  11. race — the arms race
  12. game — wild animals
  13. band — a music group
  14. race — a contest
  15. root — of a word
  16. season — in sport
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. season — of the year
  23. charge — in control
  24. race — humankind

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