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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. court — of a king
  3. mate — a partner
  4. race — the arms race
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. cap — a hat
  7. race — humankind
  8. cell — in biology
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. race — a contest
  11. cap — a lid
  12. mine — for digging
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. pitch — completely
  15. pop — to visit
  16. cell — a phone
  17. mate — a friend
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. court — for sport
  20. pop — music
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. court — of law
  23. mate — to breed
  24. pop — soda

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