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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. spring — the season
  3. race — humankind
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. spring — of water
  6. scale — size or range
  7. land — a country
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. saw — the tool
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. race — the arms race
  14. land — to come down
  15. race — a contest
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. pop — soda
  18. spring — a coil
  19. saw — the tool
  20. scale — in music
  21. pop — music
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. land — ground

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