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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. game — a match
  4. ground — a position
  5. game — wild animals
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. craft — a skill
  8. mark — a trace
  9. race — humankind
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. wound — an injury
  12. race — the arms race
  13. prune — to trim
  14. mark — a grade
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. wound — an injury
  17. spell — magic
  18. ground — the earth
  19. spell — letters
  20. race — a contest
  21. spell — a short time
  22. ground — crushed
  23. craft — boats
  24. game — a kind of play

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