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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. land — to come down
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. mine — for digging
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. race — the arms race
  7. cell — in biology
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. pop — soda
  12. stand — to bear
  13. race — humankind
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. land — ground
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. pop — to visit
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. land — a country
  23. race — a contest
  24. pop — music

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