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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bass — low music
  4. track — a path
  5. kid — to tease
  6. race — humankind
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. branch — a division
  10. kid — child
  11. track — to keep track
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. land — a country
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. land — to come down
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. race — the arms race
  19. fine — high quality
  20. track — a song
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. fine — all right
  23. land — ground
  24. bass — the fish

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