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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 116 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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. last — to go on
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. pound — a weight
  5. last — final
  6. swing — to play on
  7. ball — a great time
  8. race — humankind
  9. drill — army training
  10. bound — obliged
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. swing — music
  13. drill — the tool
  14. drill — a practice
  15. bound — certain
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. race — the arms race
  18. last — finally
  19. race — a contest
  20. swing — in golf
  21. ball — a dance
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. mine — for digging
  24. bound — tied together

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