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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. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. race — a contest
  3. chest — a box
  4. chest — of your body
  5. wound — an injury
  6. firm — a company
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. season — in sport
  10. chest — of your body
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. band — a music group
  13. wound — an injury
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. band — a ring
  18. season — of the year
  19. firm — decided
  20. fork — in a road
  21. firm — steady
  22. race — the arms race
  23. race — humankind
  24. plane — an aircraft

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