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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. spring — of water
  3. race — a contest
  4. object — to protest
  5. root — the cause
  6. club — for dancing
  7. race — the arms race
  8. game — wild animals
  9. object — a thing
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. race — humankind
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. spring — a coil
  14. root — of a word
  15. spring — the season
  16. game — a match
  17. ball — a dance
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. club — a group
  20. club — for golf
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. object — an aim
  23. root — of a plant
  24. stem — to come from

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