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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. race — a contest
  3. face — to confront
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. capital — money
  6. race — the arms race
  7. pop — soda
  8. face — to point toward
  9. game — a match
  10. game — wild animals
  11. ball — a great time
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. face — part of the head
  15. lean — thin
  16. lean — to bend
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. pop — to visit
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. stand — to bear
  21. pop — music
  22. capital — a city
  23. race — humankind
  24. lean — to rest against

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