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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. spell — a short time
  3. bass — low music
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. race — a contest
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. ground — a position
  9. spell — letters
  10. spell — magic
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. season — in sport
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. plane — a tool
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. race — humankind
  18. ground — the earth
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. ground — crushed
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. bass — the fish
  23. sharp — clever
  24. race — the arms race

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