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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. snap — to click
  5. land — ground
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. pop — music
  9. land — to come down
  10. pop — soda
  11. race — humankind
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — the arms race
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. pop — to visit
  19. bass — low music
  20. sharp — clever
  21. land — a country
  22. bass — the fish
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. ruler — for measuring

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