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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. mate — to breed
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. spring — a coil
  6. mine — for digging
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. key — in music
  9. perch — the fish
  10. mate — a friend
  11. content — happy
  12. race — humankind
  13. key — for a lock
  14. spring — the season
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. tube — a container
  17. mate — a partner
  18. content — the amount
  19. race — a contest
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. key — the most important part
  22. tube — the underground
  23. spring — of water
  24. mine — an explosive

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