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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 light ________________ burned out.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. chair — a leader
  5. race — a contest
  6. race — humankind
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. wake — a trail
  10. dip — to sink
  11. land — a country
  12. ground — the earth
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. game — a match
  15. ground — crushed
  16. game — wild animals
  17. land — ground
  18. ground — a position
  19. land — to come down
  20. bulb — for light
  21. race — the arms race
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. dip — a sauce

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