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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. staff — employees
  3. race — humankind
  4. race — a contest
  5. board — to get on
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. mine — for digging
  8. land — to come down
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. land — a country
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. object — a thing
  14. object — to protest
  15. race — the arms race
  16. wound — an injury
  17. object — an aim
  18. saw — the tool
  19. wound — an injury
  20. saw — the tool
  21. staff — employees
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. board — a committee
  24. land — ground

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