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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. race — the arms race
  3. suit — to fit
  4. race — humankind
  5. pit — in a race
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. spring — a coil
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. last — final
  11. stock — goods
  12. spring — the season
  13. suit — in cards
  14. suit — clothes
  15. spell — magic
  16. stock — shares
  17. last — finally
  18. bat — the animal
  19. pit — a hole
  20. last — to go on
  21. spell — a short time
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. race — a contest
  24. spring — of water

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