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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. foot — a measure
  4. club — for dancing
  5. club — for golf
  6. race — the arms race
  7. race — humankind
  8. branch — a division
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. race — a contest
  14. staff — employees
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — for digging
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. club — a group
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — a stick
  24. bowl — a football final

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