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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'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — the arms race
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. rash — a series
  7. pop — music
  8. pop — soda
  9. bark — to shout
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. stand — to bear
  13. pop — to visit
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. race — humankind
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. rash — hasty
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. scale — in music
  21. land — to come down
  22. scale — size or range
  23. land — a country
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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