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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. race — the arms race
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. game — a match
  6. file — a tool
  7. chip — to eat
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. chip — for betting
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. perch — the fish
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. rush — hurry
  15. race — humankind
  16. file — a line of people
  17. bass — the fish
  18. stock — shares
  19. file — a document
  20. game — wild animals
  21. bass — low music
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. race — a contest
  24. stock — goods

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