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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. race — the arms race
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. race — a contest
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. cell — a phone
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. rock — a stone
  11. field — a subject
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. field — farmland
  14. field — for sport
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. rock — music
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. cell — in biology
  21. race — humankind
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. chair — a leader

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