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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. cell — a phone
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. race — the arms race
  5. cell — in biology
  6. bass — the fish
  7. kid — child
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — humankind
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. kid — to tease
  18. band — a music group
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. band — a ring
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. bass — low music

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