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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. race — humankind
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. pound — a weight
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. current — of water
  9. squash — to crush
  10. saw — the tool
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. saw — the tool
  14. fork — in a road
  15. current — electric
  16. race — a contest
  17. wake — a trail
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. race — the arms race
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. current — happening now
  24. cabinet — ministers

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