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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 116 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 is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. drill — the tool
  4. spell — letters
  5. mine — for digging
  6. swing — music
  7. race — humankind
  8. can — to be able to
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. swing — to play on
  11. drill — a practice
  12. spell — magic
  13. fine — all right
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. race — a contest
  16. can — a tin
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. race — the arms race
  19. spell — a short time
  20. can — a tin
  21. drill — army training
  22. lean — to bend
  23. swing — in golf
  24. fine — high quality

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