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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. race — humankind
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. race — the arms race
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. hand — help
  8. fork — in a road
  9. spring — the season
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. spring — of water
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. staff — employees
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hand — in cards
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. spring — a coil
  22. staff — employees
  23. race — a contest
  24. staff — a stick

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