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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 ________________ took off on time.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. plane — a tool
  6. chair — a leader
  7. bat — the animal
  8. race — a contest
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. swing — music
  14. shower — rain
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. swing — to play on
  17. wind — moving air
  18. swing — in golf
  19. shower — to wash
  20. race — humankind
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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