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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. mug — to rob
  3. mug — a cup
  4. spell — magic
  5. race — a contest
  6. wind — moving air
  7. ball — a dance
  8. spell — letters
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. prune — to trim
  11. race — humankind
  12. pitch — completely
  13. prune — to trim
  14. race — the arms race
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. mark — a trace
  17. mark — a grade
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. spell — a short time
  22. wind — moving air
  23. ball — a great time
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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