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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. staff — employees
  5. race — humankind
  6. kid — child
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. root — of a plant
  10. bass — low music
  11. bass — the fish
  12. race — the arms race
  13. cap — a lid
  14. root — of a word
  15. cap — a hat
  16. staff — a stick
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. race — a contest
  21. root — the cause
  22. ball — a dance
  23. staff — employees
  24. cap — of ice

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