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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. wake — a trail
  4. cell — a phone
  5. race — humankind
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. deal — to handle
  9. rash — a series
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. pound — a weight
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. pop — to visit
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. race — a contest
  19. rash — hasty
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. pop — music
  22. race — the arms race
  23. cell — in biology
  24. pop — soda

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