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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. object — an aim
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. mate — to breed
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. mate — a partner
  8. object — to protest
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a match
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. race — humankind
  13. race — a contest
  14. mate — a friend
  15. object — a thing
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. pitch — completely
  21. kid — to tease
  22. chip — to eat
  23. kid — child
  24. chip — for betting

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