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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. ground — crushed
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. foot — a measure
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. ground — the earth
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. race — the arms race
  9. band — a music group
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. spring — the season
  13. spring — of water
  14. race — humankind
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. press — newspapers
  19. ground — a position
  20. band — a ring
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. press — to push
  23. spring — a coil
  24. press — a publisher

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