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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — in sport
  3. race — humankind
  4. race — the arms race
  5. present — a gift
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. drill — a practice
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. land — a country
  10. present — there
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. present — the time now
  13. drill — the tool
  14. land — to come down
  15. drill — army training
  16. race — a contest
  17. game — a match
  18. perch — the fish
  19. land — ground
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. game — wild animals
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. season — to add flavour

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