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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. court — of law
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. perch — the fish
  5. field — for sport
  6. drill — army training
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. field — farmland
  9. race — a contest
  10. charge — in control
  11. charge — electricity
  12. court — for sport
  13. drill — a practice
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. ball — a great time
  16. field — a subject
  17. court — of a king
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. race — humankind
  20. drill — the tool
  21. charge — a price
  22. ball — a dance
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. straw — dry grass

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