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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 ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. cap — a lid
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. race — the arms race
  8. land — a country
  9. cap — a hat
  10. race — humankind
  11. ground — crushed
  12. land — to come down
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. hand — in cards
  18. race — a contest
  19. mine — for digging
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. ground — a position
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. land — ground
  24. cap — of ice

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