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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. band — a music group
  3. staff — a stick
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. row — to paddle
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. race — humankind
  8. sharp — clever
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. craft — boats
  11. craft — a skill
  12. ball — a dance
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. row — a line
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — a contest
  18. staff — employees
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. band — a ring
  21. staff — employees
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. leaves — of a tree

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