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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. squash — the sport
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. race — humankind
  5. fall — to drop
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. field — farmland
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. squash — to crush
  10. fall — to drop
  11. race — the arms race
  12. field — for sport
  13. scale — in music
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. saw — the tool
  18. saw — the tool
  19. fall — the season
  20. field — a subject
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. race — a contest

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