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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 120 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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. race — the arms race
  3. bound — tied together
  4. game — a match
  5. mug — to rob
  6. race — humankind
  7. chip — to eat
  8. bat — the animal
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — farmland
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. net — in sport
  14. mug — a face
  15. field — a subject
  16. game — wild animals
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. net — for catching
  19. race — a contest
  20. net — after costs
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. mug — a cup
  23. chip — for betting
  24. bound — obliged

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