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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. race — the arms race
  3. hand — help
  4. scale — in music
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. ground — crushed
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. board — to get on
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. ground — the earth
  11. board — a committee
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. hand — in cards
  15. scale — size or range
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. race — humankind
  19. plane — a tool
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. fork — in a road
  23. race — a contest
  24. ground — a position

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