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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. scale — in music
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. mine — for digging
  8. rest — what's left
  9. race — a contest
  10. mark — a grade
  11. rest — what's left
  12. scale — size or range
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bore — to drill
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. swing — in golf
  18. bore — to tire
  19. swing — to play on
  20. swing — music
  21. race — the arms race
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. rest — a break
  24. mark — a trace

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