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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. wound — an injury
  4. perch — the fish
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. mark — a grade
  7. swing — music
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. wound — an injury
  10. mark — a trace
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — humankind
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. swing — to play on
  16. swing — in golf
  17. branch — a division
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. scale — in music
  21. scale — size or range
  22. cell — a phone
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. cell — in biology

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