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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. net — in sport
  3. bank — for money
  4. race — humankind
  5. game — a match
  6. band — a music group
  7. race — the arms race
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. band — a ring
  11. ground — a position
  12. bank — of a river
  13. ground — crushed
  14. game — wild animals
  15. rock — a stone
  16. net — for catching
  17. degree — an amount
  18. degree — from a university
  19. rock — music
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bank — for money
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. ground — the earth
  24. net — after costs

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